The Contemporary Tourist

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Tourism Indicator

International Tourist Arrivals

The number of international visitors entering a destination during a reporting year.

Countries Ranked

25

Latest Displayed Year

2024

Category

Tourism Demand

Unit

Arrivals

At a Glance

Understanding international tourist arrivals

  • • This indicator belongs to the Tourism Demand category.
  • • Values are presented in arrivals.
  • • Rankings use the best verified or published record currently available for each country.
  • • Reporting years and official datasets may differ between countries.

Definition

What does this indicator measure?

International tourist arrivals measure the number of non-resident visitors who enter a destination and stay for tourism purposes during a reporting period. The indicator counts arrivals rather than unique people, so the same traveler may be counted more than once across separate trips.

Significance

Why does it matter?

International tourist arrivals are widely used to measure tourism demand, destination growth, and changes in international visitor activity. They can also help destinations plan transportation, accommodation, public services, and tourism infrastructure.

Interpretation

How should it be interpreted?

Higher arrivals generally indicate stronger international tourism demand. However, arrivals alone do not show how long visitors stay or how much they spend, so the indicator should be interpreted alongside tourism receipts and international tourist nights.

Global Ranking

Countries ranked by international tourist arrivals

Only verified or published records with usable values are included. Reporting years and source datasets may differ between countries.

#1

Spain

UN Tourism · International Tourist Arrivals

93.8M2024
#2

United States

UN Tourism · International Tourist Arrivals

72.4M2024
#3

Italy

UN Tourism · International Tourist Arrivals

57.7M2024
#4

Turkiye

UN Tourism · International Tourist Arrivals

50.5M2022
#5

France

UN Tourism · International Tourist Arrivals

48.4M2021
#6

Mexico

UN Tourism · International Tourist Arrivals

45M2024
#7

United Kingdom

UN Tourism · International Tourist Arrivals

38.2M2024
#8

Germany

UN Tourism · International Tourist Arrivals

37.4M2024
#9

Japan

UN Tourism · International Tourist Arrivals

36.9M2024
#10

Saudi Arabia

UN Tourism · International Tourist Arrivals

29.7M2024
#11

Portugal

UN Tourism · International Tourist Arrivals

29M2024
#12

Greece

UN Tourism · International Tourist Arrivals

27.8M2022
#13

Austria

UN Tourism · International Tourist Arrivals

26.2M2022
#14

Hong Kong SAR, China

UN Tourism · International Tourist Arrivals

21.9M2024
#15

Canada

UN Tourism · International Tourist Arrivals

19.9M2024
#16

Poland

UN Tourism · International Tourist Arrivals

19.7M2024
#17

Korea, Rep.

UN Tourism · International Tourist Arrivals

16.4M2024
#18

Netherlands

UN Tourism · International Tourist Arrivals

16.1M2022
#19

Macao SAR, China

UN Tourism · International Tourist Arrivals

16M2024
#20

Croatia

UN Tourism · International Tourist Arrivals

15.3M2022
#21

Slovak Republic

World Bank · International Tourist Arrivals

15.3M2018
#22

Denmark

UN Tourism · International Tourist Arrivals

14.2M2022
#23

Indonesia

UN Tourism · International Tourist Arrivals

13.6M2024
#24

Romania

UN Tourism · International Tourist Arrivals

13.4M2024
#25

Hungary

UN Tourism · International Tourist Arrivals

13.2M2024

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Methodology & Data Notes

Transparent by design

TCTI rankings use the best currently available verified or published observation for each country.

The selected records may come from different reporting years or official datasets, so this ranking should not be treated as a perfectly synchronized comparison for one universal year.

The most frequently represented source in this ranking is UN Tourism. Individual country records may use other official sources.

Open a country dashboard to review the exact source, year, dataset, and broader context behind an individual value.