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After five years, global tourism has returned to the level it was at before the coronavirus pandemic. Around 1.47 billion international arrivals were recorded last year. This is according to data from the World Tourism Organization, UN Tourism, which regularly publishes statistics on global travel behavior. Austria recorded 32.2 million arrivals last year and ranks 13th. France ranks first with 102 million tourist arrivals.
A ranking provides insight into which countries are trending or still popular and also which are less in demand than before. The latest list is based on figures for 2024. It shows that the global desire to travel has returned after the pandemic. Worldwide, buzzwords such as flight shame do not seem to play a significant role. Hundreds of millions of people are flying.
France has topped the list of most visited countries for decades, but Spain is hot on its neighbor’s heels. But which countries are still in the top 20? And where does Germany rank? The countdown:
Places 20 to 11
India ranks 20th, with 20.6 million international arrivals recorded. The Netherlands counted 21.3 million visitors. According to these statistics, 18th place goes to Hong Kong in China, which is still listed separately here. Places 17 and 16: Malaysia and Portugal.
Rank 15 is held by Saudi Arabia, which has risen in the rankings, with 29.7 million arrivals from abroad, compared to only 17.5 million in 2019. The United Arab Emirates is in 14th place.
Austria recorded 32.2 million arrivals last year (up 4.2 percent compared to the previous year) and ranks 13th. Twelfth place goes to Thailand (35.5 million; up 26.3 percent), and eleventh place to Greece (36 million; up 9.8 percent).
The top ten follows, with UN Tourism emphasizing, “In fact, neither China nor the United Kingdom has published data on international tourist arrivals for 2024.” They are waiting for the two countries to publish this information in the coming weeks. Their preliminary ranking—eighth and seventh place—is based on estimates.
10. Japan
The Land of the Rising Sun—and Tokyo in particular—has long had a reputation as an expensive travel destination. However, the weakness of the yen has made vacations in Japan affordable for many, and this was evident last year. After 25 million visitors in 2023, there was suddenly an increase of 47 percent, and 36.9 million foreign tourists. It was a completely new experience for the Japanese to suddenly become a kind of cheap travel destination.
9. Germany
With 37.5 million visitors (up 7.8 percent), Germany made it into the top ten most visited countries (even though the number is still below that of 2019). The Federal Republic scores points for its diversity for city and culture travelers—from Hamburg to Munich, Cologne to Berlin, Heidelberg to Dresden, and Lübeck to Weimar. Famous events such as the Oktoberfest in Munich, museums, hearty food, and historic buildings such as Cologne Cathedral, Wartburg Castle, and Neuschwanstein Castle are a source of inspiration.
8. Great Britain or United Kingdom
Although no official data is available yet, the United Kingdom ranks eighth based on estimates. There were probably around 39 million visitors—London alone attracts many fans, and historic cities such as Edinburgh, Oxford, Cambridge, and Bath are also popular.
7. China
Although no official data is available yet, China is estimated to be in seventh place. Highlights for visitors include the Forbidden City in Beijing, the Great Wall of China, the Terracotta Army in Xi’an, and, of course, the diverse cuisine.
6. Mexico
Travel influencers have discovered this diverse country as a hotspot for themselves. Whether it’s the fascinating metropolis of Mexico City or the beautiful beaches, Mexico is trendy, even if there are frequent anti-tourism protests there. Forty-five million (up 7.4 percent) traveled there last year.
5. Italy
Bella Italia: It should come as no surprise that Italy, with its cuisine, the hills of Tuscany, and the mountains of the Dolomites, is one of the most visited countries in the world. 57.7 million people visited last year (in 2019, the figure was almost 65 million).
There are numerous cities worth seeing: Rome, Venice, Milan, Florence, Rimini, Pisa, Naples, Bologna, Bergamo, Genoa, Sanremo, Ravenna, Verona, Trieste, Como, and Palermo—to name but a few.
4. Turkey
This country straddling Europe and Asia is very popular. It attracted 60.6 million visitors (up 9.8 percent).
Among its popular attractions is the stunning city of Istanbul, one of the most exciting cities in the world.
3. United States of America
As the land of opportunity, the US has long been revered and romanticized. New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Las Vegas are places of longing. 72.4 million arrivals from abroad were registered in 2024. In 2019, however, there were still 79.4 million visitors.
The immigration policy under President Donald Trump, which does not exactly appear to be welcoming, is likely to accelerate the downward trend in 2025. Who wants to go there if they might be turned away at the border?
2. Spain
A vibrant country with cities such as Barcelona, Seville, Madrid, Málaga, Granada, and San Sebastián—and popular islands such as Mallorca, Ibiza, Tenerife, and Gran Canaria.
Tourism is booming, but recently there have been frequent demonstrations against so-called overtourism. In 2024, 93.8 million foreign visitors were counted, around ten million more than in the pre-corona year 2019.
1. France
Vive la France: There were around 102 million international tourist arrivals in 2024 (up two percent compared to 2023). The capital, Paris alone—glorified as the city of love and traditionally a stronghold of fine dining—is a magnet. The Eiffel Tower, Louvre, Arc de Triomphe, and Versailles are just outside the city gates. As is well known, the Olympic Games and Paralympics were also held in Paris in 2024.
Other attractions in France include Lyon, the Loire castles, and Marseille. The Côte d’Azur, with Saint-Tropez, Cannes, Antibes, and Nice, is considered the cradle of tourism itself. Tourism was, so to speak, invented in France. The country is still the number one tourist destination.
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