The number of international tourist arrivals worldwide rose sharply in 2023 compared to the previous year across all the most visited destinations in the world. Overall, France was the most visited country by inbound travelers worldwide in 2023, with 100 million international tourist arrivals. Spain, the United States, and Italy followed in the ranking that year. Has global inbound tourism recovered from the impact of COVID-19? In 2023, the number of international tourist arrivals worldwide totaled approximately 1.3 billion. While this figure represented a 33 percent annual increase, it remained below the peak in inbound tourist arrivals reported in 2019, the year before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. That said, international tourism receipts worldwide exceeded pre-pandemic levels in 2023, peaking at 1.5 trillion U.S. dollars. What are the most popular global regions for inbound tourism? When breaking down the number of international tourist arrivals worldwide by region, Europe has consistently reported the highest volume of inbound travelers, both before and after the impact of the health crisis. In 2023, this region alone accounted for roughly 55 percent of global inbound tourist arrivals. Meanwhile, Asia and the Pacific recorded the second-highest number of inbound tourist arrivals worldwide in 2023.

This dataset provides values for TOURIST ARRIVALS reported in several countries. The data includes current values, previous releases, historical highs and record lows, release frequency, reported unit and currency.

The number of international tourist arrivals worldwide increased significantly in 2024 over the previous year, nearly catching up with pre-pandemic levels. After declining with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic to roughly 406 million, the lowest figure recorded since 1989, global inbound tourist arrivals exceeded 1.4 billion in 2024, being just 1.3 percent lower than in 2019. Europe is the most popular destination for international tourism Europe is the global region that attracts the highest number of international tourists. In 2024, inbound tourist arrivals in Europe exceeded pre-pandemic levels, totaling almost 750 million. Within this region, Southern and Mediterranean Europe was the most popular area for international tourism, recording over 300 million arrivals in 2024. How big is the global travel and tourism market? According to Statista Mobility Market Insights, the global travel and tourism market's revenue – including hotels, package holidays, vacation rentals, and camping – amounted to nearly 880 billion U.S. dollars in 2023, recovering from the impact of COVID-19. Breaking down travel and tourism's revenue worldwide by sales channels reveals that the online channel generated over two-thirds of the global transactions' value that year.

Denmark DK: International Tourism: Number of Arrivals data was reported at 10,781,000.000 Person in 2016. This records an increase from the previous number of 10,424,000.000 Person for 2015. Denmark DK: International Tourism: Number of Arrivals data is updated yearly, averaging 8,457,000.000 Person from Dec 1995 (Median) to 2016, with 22 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 10,781,000.000 Person in 2016 and a record low of 2,023,000.000 Person in 1999. Denmark DK: International Tourism: Number of Arrivals data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Denmark – Table DK.World Bank.WDI: Tourism Statistics. International inbound tourists (overnight visitors) are the number of tourists who travel to a country other than that in which they have their usual residence, but outside their usual environment, for a period not exceeding 12 months and whose main purpose in visiting is other than an activity remunerated from within the country visited. When data on number of tourists are not available, the number of visitors, which includes tourists, same-day visitors, cruise passengers, and crew members, is shown instead. Sources and collection methods for arrivals differ across countries. In some cases data are from border statistics (police, immigration, and the like) and supplemented by border surveys. In other cases data are from tourism accommodation establishments. For some countries number of arrivals is limited to arrivals by air and for others to arrivals staying in hotels. Some countries include arrivals of nationals residing abroad while others do not. Caution should thus be used in comparing arrivals across countries. The data on inbound tourists refer to the number of arrivals, not to the number of people traveling. Thus a person who makes several trips to a country during a given period is counted each time as a new arrival.; ; World Tourism Organization, Yearbook of Tourism Statistics, Compendium of Tourism Statistics and data files.; Gap-filled total;

Saudi Arabia SA: International Tourism: Number of Arrivals data was reported at 18,049,000.000 Person in 2016. This records an increase from the previous number of 17,994,000.000 Person for 2015. Saudi Arabia SA: International Tourism: Number of Arrivals data is updated yearly, averaging 10,873,500.000 Person from Dec 1995 (Median) to 2016, with 18 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 18,260,000.000 Person in 2014 and a record low of 3,325,000.000 Person in 1995. Saudi Arabia SA: International Tourism: Number of Arrivals data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Saudi Arabia – Table SA.World Bank.WDI: Tourism Statistics. International inbound tourists (overnight visitors) are the number of tourists who travel to a country other than that in which they have their usual residence, but outside their usual environment, for a period not exceeding 12 months and whose main purpose in visiting is other than an activity remunerated from within the country visited. When data on number of tourists are not available, the number of visitors, which includes tourists, same-day visitors, cruise passengers, and crew members, is shown instead. Sources and collection methods for arrivals differ across countries. In some cases data are from border statistics (police, immigration, and the like) and supplemented by border surveys. In other cases data are from tourism accommodation establishments. For some countries number of arrivals is limited to arrivals by air and for others to arrivals staying in hotels. Some countries include arrivals of nationals residing abroad while others do not. Caution should thus be used in comparing arrivals across countries. The data on inbound tourists refer to the number of arrivals, not to the number of people traveling. Thus a person who makes several trips to a country during a given period is counted each time as a new arrival.; ; World Tourism Organization, Yearbook of Tourism Statistics, Compendium of Tourism Statistics and data files.; Gap-filled total;

United Kingdom UK: International Tourism: Number of Arrivals data was reported at 35,814,000.000 Person in 2016. This records an increase from the previous number of 34,436,000.000 Person for 2015. United Kingdom UK: International Tourism: Number of Arrivals data is updated yearly, averaging 28,119,000.000 Person from Dec 1995 (Median) to 2016, with 22 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 35,814,000.000 Person in 2016 and a record low of 20,982,000.000 Person in 2001. United Kingdom UK: International Tourism: Number of Arrivals data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United Kingdom – Table UK.World Bank.WDI: Tourism Statistics. International inbound tourists (overnight visitors) are the number of tourists who travel to a country other than that in which they have their usual residence, but outside their usual environment, for a period not exceeding 12 months and whose main purpose in visiting is other than an activity remunerated from within the country visited. When data on number of tourists are not available, the number of visitors, which includes tourists, same-day visitors, cruise passengers, and crew members, is shown instead. Sources and collection methods for arrivals differ across countries. In some cases data are from border statistics (police, immigration, and the like) and supplemented by border surveys. In other cases data are from tourism accommodation establishments. For some countries number of arrivals is limited to arrivals by air and for others to arrivals staying in hotels. Some countries include arrivals of nationals residing abroad while others do not. Caution should thus be used in comparing arrivals across countries. The data on inbound tourists refer to the number of arrivals, not to the number of people traveling. Thus a person who makes several trips to a country during a given period is counted each time as a new arrival.; ; World Tourism Organization, Yearbook of Tourism Statistics, Compendium of Tourism Statistics and data files.; Gap-filled total;

Mongolia MN: International Tourism: Number of Arrivals data was reported at 404,000.000 Person in 2016. This records an increase from the previous number of 386,000.000 Person for 2015. Mongolia MN: International Tourism: Number of Arrivals data is updated yearly, averaging 362,000.000 Person from Dec 1995 (Median) to 2016, with 22 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 476,000.000 Person in 2012 and a record low of 55,000.000 Person in 1997. Mongolia MN: International Tourism: Number of Arrivals data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Mongolia – Table MN.World Bank.WDI: Tourism Statistics. International inbound tourists (overnight visitors) are the number of tourists who travel to a country other than that in which they have their usual residence, but outside their usual environment, for a period not exceeding 12 months and whose main purpose in visiting is other than an activity remunerated from within the country visited. When data on number of tourists are not available, the number of visitors, which includes tourists, same-day visitors, cruise passengers, and crew members, is shown instead. Sources and collection methods for arrivals differ across countries. In some cases data are from border statistics (police, immigration, and the like) and supplemented by border surveys. In other cases data are from tourism accommodation establishments. For some countries number of arrivals is limited to arrivals by air and for others to arrivals staying in hotels. Some countries include arrivals of nationals residing abroad while others do not. Caution should thus be used in comparing arrivals across countries. The data on inbound tourists refer to the number of arrivals, not to the number of people traveling. Thus a person who makes several trips to a country during a given period is counted each time as a new arrival.; ; World Tourism Organization, Yearbook of Tourism Statistics, Compendium of Tourism Statistics and data files.; Gap-filled total;

United States US: International Tourism: Number of Departures data was reported at 73,453,000.000 Person in 2015. This records an increase from the previous number of 68,176,000.000 Person for 2014. United States US: International Tourism: Number of Departures data is updated yearly, averaging 61,061,000.000 Person from Dec 1995 (Median) to 2015, with 21 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 73,453,000.000 Person in 2015 and a record low of 51,285,000.000 Person in 1995. United States US: International Tourism: Number of Departures data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United States – Table US.World Bank.WDI: Tourism Statistics. International outbound tourists are the number of departures that people make from their country of usual residence to any other country for any purpose other than a remunerated activity in the country visited. The data on outbound tourists refer to the number of departures, not to the number of people traveling. Thus a person who makes several trips from a country during a given period is counted each time as a new departure.; ; World Tourism Organization, Yearbook of Tourism Statistics, Compendium of Tourism Statistics and data files.; Gap-filled total;

International tourism receipts are expenditures by international inbound visitors, including payments to national carriers for international transport. These receipts include any other prepayment made for goods or services received in the destination country. They also may include receipts from same-day visitors, except when these are important enough to justify separate classification. For some countries they do not include receipts for passenger transport items. Data are in current U.S. dollars.

Tourist movement on borders: Number of tourists by country of residence. Monthly. National.

United States US: International Tourism: Number of Arrivals data was reported at 75,608,000.000 Person in 2016. This records a decrease from the previous number of 77,465,000.000 Person for 2015. United States US: International Tourism: Number of Arrivals data is updated yearly, averaging 51,107,500.000 Person from Dec 1995 (Median) to 2016, with 22 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 77,465,000.000 Person in 2015 and a record low of 41,218,000.000 Person in 2003. United States US: International Tourism: Number of Arrivals data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United States – Table US.World Bank.WDI: Tourism Statistics. International inbound tourists (overnight visitors) are the number of tourists who travel to a country other than that in which they have their usual residence, but outside their usual environment, for a period not exceeding 12 months and whose main purpose in visiting is other than an activity remunerated from within the country visited. When data on number of tourists are not available, the number of visitors, which includes tourists, same-day visitors, cruise passengers, and crew members, is shown instead. Sources and collection methods for arrivals differ across countries. In some cases data are from border statistics (police, immigration, and the like) and supplemented by border surveys. In other cases data are from tourism accommodation establishments. For some countries number of arrivals is limited to arrivals by air and for others to arrivals staying in hotels. Some countries include arrivals of nationals residing abroad while others do not. Caution should thus be used in comparing arrivals across countries. The data on inbound tourists refer to the number of arrivals, not to the number of people traveling. Thus a person who makes several trips to a country during a given period is counted each time as a new arrival.; ; World Tourism Organization, Yearbook of Tourism Statistics, Compendium of Tourism Statistics and data files.; Gap-filled total;

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic hit the travel and tourism market hard. While the number of international tourist arrivals worldwide roughly doubled in 2022 over the previous year, it remained below pre-pandemic levels. When looking at the percentage change in international tourist arrivals due to the health crisis, the region of Asia and the Pacific reported the sharpest drops. In that area, inbound visitors were 38 percent lower between January and September 2023 compared to 2019. Over the same period, global international arrivals experienced a 13 percent decline.

Tourist movement on borders: Number of tourists by country of residence. Annual. National.

International tourism receipts are expenditures by international inbound visitors, including payments to national carriers for international transport. These receipts include any other prepayment made for goods or services received in the destination country. They also may include receipts from same-day visitors, except when these are important enough to justify separate classification. For some countries they do not include receipts for passenger transport items. Data are in current U.S. dollars.

The United States was the global travel destination with the highest international tourism receipts in 2023. That year, inbound tourism receipts in the U.S. amounted to roughly 189 billion U.S. dollars. While this figure denoted a sharp annual increase, it remained below pre-pandemic levels. Meanwhile, Spain and the United Kingdom followed in the ranking in 2023, with around 92 billion and 73 billion U.S. dollars, respectively. What are the most visited countries in the world? While France ranked fourth based on international tourism receipts, it topped the list of the countries with the highest number of inbound tourist arrivals worldwide, both before and after the impact of the pandemic. In 2023, France recorded 100 million arrivals by international travelers, while Spain and the United States followed in the ranking with over 85 million and 66 million arrivals, respectively. What is the economic impact of travel and tourism worldwide? As estimated, the total contribution of travel and tourism to GDP worldwide amounted to just under 10 trillion U.S. dollars in 2023. This figure refers to the direct, indirect, and induced impacts of these industries. That year, the number of travel and tourism jobs worldwide exceeded 300 million.

Global Number of Tourists (Overnight Visitors) by Country, 2021 Discover more data with ReportLinker!

This dataset provides values for TOURIST ARRIVALS reported in several countries. The data includes current values, previous releases, historical highs and record lows, release frequency, reported unit and currency.

France FR: International Tourism: Number of Arrivals data was reported at 82,570,000.000 Person in 2016. This records a decrease from the previous number of 84,452,000.000 Person for 2015. France FR: International Tourism: Number of Arrivals data is updated yearly, averaging 76,888,000.000 Person from Dec 1995 (Median) to 2016, with 22 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 84,452,000.000 Person in 2015 and a record low of 60,033,000.000 Person in 1995. France FR: International Tourism: Number of Arrivals data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s France – Table FR.World Bank.WDI: Tourism Statistics. International inbound tourists (overnight visitors) are the number of tourists who travel to a country other than that in which they have their usual residence, but outside their usual environment, for a period not exceeding 12 months and whose main purpose in visiting is other than an activity remunerated from within the country visited. When data on number of tourists are not available, the number of visitors, which includes tourists, same-day visitors, cruise passengers, and crew members, is shown instead. Sources and collection methods for arrivals differ across countries. In some cases data are from border statistics (police, immigration, and the like) and supplemented by border surveys. In other cases data are from tourism accommodation establishments. For some countries number of arrivals is limited to arrivals by air and for others to arrivals staying in hotels. Some countries include arrivals of nationals residing abroad while others do not. Caution should thus be used in comparing arrivals across countries. The data on inbound tourists refer to the number of arrivals, not to the number of people traveling. Thus a person who makes several trips to a country during a given period is counted each time as a new arrival.; ; World Tourism Organization, Yearbook of Tourism Statistics, Compendium of Tourism Statistics and data files.; Gap-filled total;

Tanzania TZ: International Tourism: Number of Arrivals data was reported at 1,233,000.000 Person in 2016. This records an increase from the previous number of 1,104,000.000 Person for 2015. Tanzania TZ: International Tourism: Number of Arrivals data is updated yearly, averaging 606,000.000 Person from Dec 1995 (Median) to 2016, with 22 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 1,233,000.000 Person in 2016 and a record low of 285,000.000 Person in 1995. Tanzania TZ: International Tourism: Number of Arrivals data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Tanzania – Table TZ.World Bank: Tourism Statistics. International inbound tourists (overnight visitors) are the number of tourists who travel to a country other than that in which they have their usual residence, but outside their usual environment, for a period not exceeding 12 months and whose main purpose in visiting is other than an activity remunerated from within the country visited. When data on number of tourists are not available, the number of visitors, which includes tourists, same-day visitors, cruise passengers, and crew members, is shown instead. Sources and collection methods for arrivals differ across countries. In some cases data are from border statistics (police, immigration, and the like) and supplemented by border surveys. In other cases data are from tourism accommodation establishments. For some countries number of arrivals is limited to arrivals by air and for others to arrivals staying in hotels. Some countries include arrivals of nationals residing abroad while others do not. Caution should thus be used in comparing arrivals across countries. The data on inbound tourists refer to the number of arrivals, not to the number of people traveling. Thus a person who makes several trips to a country during a given period is counted each time as a new arrival.; ; World Tourism Organization, Yearbook of Tourism Statistics, Compendium of Tourism Statistics and data files.; Gap-filled total;

This statistic shows the number of international tourist arrivals worldwide from 1990 to 2019, by region of origin. In 2019, about 381.7 million international tourists originated from Asia and the Pacific region.

Global tourism - additional information International tourist arrivals increased gradually between 2009 and 2019 as a result of the growing ease of travel for many people around the world. In recent years, the number of tourists traveling the globe annually exceeded the one billion mark. In 2019, the region with the largest number of outbound travelers was Europe, with approximately 703 million travelers, while Asia Pacific was the second leading region. Figures were also similar in terms of international tourist arrivals to the two regions. The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) forecast that the gap between the Asia Pacific region and Europe will shorten significantly by 2030.

Travel and tourism made a total contribution of roughly 9.26 trillion U.S. dollars to the global economy in 2019. The economic impact of tourism is clearly recognized by country leaders all over the world and it is particularly important to those of less developed economies. The fastest-emerging country in terms of tourism’s direct economic contribution in coming years is expected to be Namibia. The South-West African country’s tourism industry focuses on wildlife and ecotourism and is predicted to grow by 9.1 percent annually between 2014 and 2024.

At the other end of the scale, leading tourist destinations, such as France, Spain, and the United States attracted around 80 million visitors in 2019. In the case of cities, the MasterCard Global Destination Cities Index found that Bangkok was the most visited city worldwide in 2018, with 22.78 million international visitors.