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World Tourism rankings

The World Tourism rankings are compiled by the United Nations World Tourism Organization as part of their World Tourism Barometer publication, which is released three times annually. In the publication, UN regions and subregions are ranked by the number of international visitor arrivals, by the revenue generated by inbound tourism, and by the expenditures of outbound travelers.

Contents

Most visited destinations by international tourist arrivalsEdit

In 2017, there were 1.323 billion international tourist arrivals worldwide, with a growth of 6.8% as compared to 2016.[1] The top 10 international tourism destinations in 2017 were (2017 numbers are preliminary):

Rank Destination International
tourist
arrivals
(2017)[1]		 International
tourist
arrivals
(2016)[1]		 Change
(2016 to
2017)
(%)		 Change
(2015 to
2016)
(%)
1   France 86.9 million 82.7 million   5.1   2.1
2   Spain 81.8 million 75.3 million   8.6   10.5
3   United States 76.9 million 76.4 million   0.7   1.8
4   China 60.7 million 59.3 million   2.5   4.2
5   Italy 58.3 million 52.4 million   11.2   3.2
6   Mexico 39.3 million 35.1 million   12.0   9.3
7   United Kingdom 37.7 million 35.8 million   5.1   4.0
8   Turkey 37.6 million 30.3 million   24.1   23.3
9   Germany 37.5 million 35.6 million   5.2   1.8
10   Thailand 35.4 million 32.6 million   8.6   8.9

AfricaEdit

In 2016, there were over 57.8 million international tourist arrivals to Africa, an increase of 7.8% from 2015. Preliminary numbers for 2017 indicate a similar increase.[1] In 2016, the top ten African destinations were:

Rank Destination International
tourist
arrivals
(2016)[1]		 International
tourist
arrivals
(2015)[2]		 Change
(2015 to
2016)
(%)		 Change
(2014 to
2015)
(%)
1   Morocco 10.3 million 10.2 million   1.5   1.0
2   South Africa 10.0 million 8.9 million   12.8   6.8
3   Tunisia 5.7 million 5.4 million   6.8   25.2
4   Egypt 5.3 million 9.1 million   42.5   5.1
5   Zimbabwe 2.2 million 2.0 million   5.4   9.4
6   Algeria 2.0 million 1.7 million   19.2   25.7
7   Nigeria 1.9 million 1.3 million   50.5 –
8   Mozambique 1.6 million 1.6 million   5.6   6.6
9   Ivory Coast 1.6 million 1.4 million   9.9   205.9
10   Namibia 1.5 million 1.4 million   5.8   5.1
Note: Egypt is classified under "Middle East" in the UNWTO.[3]

AmericasEdit

In 2017, there were 208.7 million international tourist arrivals to the Americas, an increase of 4.0%.[1] In 2017, the top ten destinations were (2017 numbers are preliminary, Cuba numbers not yet available):

Rank Destination International
tourist
arrivals
(2017)[1]		 International
tourist
arrivals
(2016)[1]		 Change
(2016 to
2017)
(%)		 Change
(2015 to
2016)
(%)
1   United States 76.9 million 76.4 million   0.7   1.8
2   Mexico 39.3 million 35.1 million   12.0   9.3
3   Canada 20.8 million 20.0 million   4.1   11.1
4   Argentina 6.7 million 6.6 million   1.0   15.7
5   Brazil 6.6 million 6.5 million   0.6   3.8
6   Chile 6.5 million 5.6 million   14.3   26.0
7   Dominican Republic 6.2 million 6.0 million   3.8   6.4
8   Cuba – 4.0 million –   13.4
9   Peru 4.0 million 3.7 million   7.7   8.4
10   Colombia 4.0 million 3.3 million   21.4   11.4

Asia-PacificEdit

In 2017, there were over 323 million international tourist arrivals to Asia-Pacific, an increase of 5.6% over 2016.[1] In 2017, the top ten destinations were (2017 numbers are preliminary):

Rank Destination International
tourist
arrivals
(2017)[1]		 International
tourist
arrivals
(2016)[1]		 Change
(2016 to
2017)
(%)		 Change
(2015 to
2016)
(%)
1   China 60.7 million 59.3 million   2.5   4.2
2   Thailand 35.4 million 32.6 million   8.6   8.9
3   Japan 28.7 million 24.0 million   19.4   21.8
4   Hong Kong 27.9 million 26.6 million   5.0   0.5
5   Malaysia 26.0 million 26.8 million   3.0   4.0
6   Macau 17.3 million 15.7 million   9.9   9.8
7   India 15.5 million 14.6 million   6.7   9.7
8   Singapore 13.9 million 12.9 million   7.7   7.2
9   South Korea 13.3 million 17.2 million   22.7   30.3
10   Indonesia 12.9 million 11.0 million   16.9   11.1

EuropeEdit

In 2017, there were over 670 million international tourist arrivals to Europe, an increase of 8.3% over 2016.[1] In 2017, the top ten destinations were (2017 numbers are preliminary):

Rank Destination International
tourist
arrivals
(2017)[1]		 International
tourist
arrivals
(2016)[1]		 Change
(2016 to
2017)
(%)		 Change
(2015 to
2016)
(%)
1   France 86.9 million 82.7 million   5.1   2.1
2   Spain 81.8 million 75.3 million   8.6   10.5
3   Italy 58.3 million 52.4 million   11.2   3.2
4   United Kingdom 37.7 million 35.8 million   5.1   4.0
5   Turkey 37.6 million 30.3 million   24.1   23.3
6   Germany 37.5 million 35.6 million   5.2   1.8
7   Austria 29.5 million 28.1 million   4.8   5.2
8   Greece 27.2 million 24.8 million   9.7   5.1
9   Russia 24.4 million 24.6 million   0.7   8.5
10   Portugal 21.2 million 18.2 million   16.5 –

Middle EastEdit

In 2016, there were 55.6 million international tourist arrivals to the Middle East (excluding Turkey, Iran and Israel), a decrease of 4.4% over 2015. Preliminary numbers for 2017 indicate an increase of 4.6%.[1] In 2016, the top ten destinations were:

Rank Destination International
tourist
arrivals
(2016)[1]		 International
tourist
arrivals
(2015)[2]		 Change
(2015 to
2016)
(%)		 Change
(2014 to
2015)
(%)
1   Turkey 30.3 million 39.5 million   23.3   5.3
2   Saudi Arabia 18.0 million 18.0 million   0.3   1.5
3   United Arab Emirates 14.9 million 14.2 million   4.7   7.6
4   Egypt 5.3 million 9.1 million   42.5   5.1
5   Iran 4.9 million 5.2 million   5.6   5.4
6   Jordan 3.6 million 3.8 million   5.2   5.7
7   Qatar 2.9 million 2.9 million   0.1   3.7
8   Israel 2.9 million 2.8 million   3.6   4.4
9   Oman 2.3 million 1.9 million   20.1   17.8
10   Lebanon 1.7 million 1.5 million   11.2   12.1
Note: Iran is classified as part of "South Asia" in the UNWTO.[3]

Turkey and Israel are classified as part of "Southern/Medit.Europe" in the UNWTO.[3]

International tourism receiptsEdit

International tourism receipts grew to US$1,340 billion in 2017, corresponding to an increase in real terms of 4.9% from 2016.[1] The World Tourism Organization reports the following destinations as the top ten tourism earners for the year 2017, with the United States by far the top earner.

Rank Region International
tourism
receipts

(US$ billion) (2017)[1]

 International
tourism
receipts

(US$ billion)
(2016)[1]

 Change
(2016 to
2017)
(%)
1   United States 210.7 206.9   1.9%
2   Spain 68.0 60.5   10.1%
3   France 60.7 54.5   9.0%
4   Thailand 57.5 48.8   13.1%
5   United Kingdom 51.2 47.9   12.1%
6   Italy 44.2 40.2   7.7%
7   Australia 41.7 37.0   9.3%
8   Germany 39.8 37.5   4.2%
9   Macau 35.6 30.4   17.6%
10   Japan 34.1 30.7   14.4%

AfricaEdit

Rank Region International
tourism
receipts
(US$ million)
(2017)[1]
1   South Africa 8,818
2   Egypt 7,775
3   Morocco 7,417
4   Nigeria 2,549
5   Tanzania 2,339
6   Mauritius 1,748
7   Tunisia 1,299
8   Sudan 1,029
9   Kenya 926
10   Uganda 918

AmericasEdit

Rank Region International
tourism
receipts
(US$ million)
(2017)[1]
1   United States 210,747
2   Mexico 21,333
3   Canada 20,328
4   Dominican Republic 7,178
5   Brazil 5,809
6   Argentina 5,060
7   Colombia 4,821
8   Panama 4,452
9   Puerto Rico 4,090
10   Costa Rica 3,876

Asia-PacificEdit

Rank Region International
tourism
receipts
(US$ million)
(2017)[1]
1   Thailand 57,477
2   Australia 41,732
3   Macau 35,575
4   Japan 34,054
5   Hong Kong 33,304
6   China 32,617
7   India 27,365
8   Singapore 19,707
9   Malaysia 18,323
10   South Korea 13,427

EuropeEdit

Rank Region International
tourism
receipts
(US$ million)
(2017)[1]
1   Spain 67,964
2   France 60,681
3   United Kingdom 51,211
4   Italy 44,233
5   Germany 39,823
6   Turkey 22,478
7   Austria 20,400
8   Switzerland 17,003
9   Greece 16,528
10   Netherlands 15,867

Middle EastEdit

Rank Region International
tourism
receipts
(US$ million)
(2017)[1]
1   Turkey 22,478
2   United Arab Emirates 21,048
3   Saudi Arabia 12,056
4   Lebanon 7,611
5   Egypt 7,775
6   Israel 6,821
7   Qatar 5,971
8   Jordan 4,639
9   Iran 3,713*
10   Iraq 2,423*
Note: Numbers for Iran and Iraq are for 2016.

International tourism expendituresEdit

The World Tourism Organization reports the following source countries as the top ten spenders on international tourism for the year 2017, with China by far being the top spender:

Rank Country International
tourism
expenditure
(2017)[1]		 International
tourism
expenditure
(2016)[4]		 Change
(2016 to
2017)
(%) [1]
1   China $257.7 billion $250.1 billion   4.7
2   United States $135.0 billion $123.6 billion   9.3
3   Germany $89.1 billion $79.8 billion   9.4
4   United Kingdom $71.4 billion $64.8 billion   2.4
5   France $41.4 billion $40.3 billion   0.8
6   Australia $34.2 billion $30.8 billion   7.7
7   Canada $31.8 billion $28.7 billion   8.5
8   Russia $31.1 billion $24.0 billion   29.7
9   South Korea $30.6 billion $27.2 billion   12.3
10   Italy $27.7 billion $25.0 billion   8.9

See alsoEdit

ReferencesEdit

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z "UNWTO Tourism Highlights: 2018 Edition | World Tourism Organization".
  2. ^ a b "UNWTO Tourism Highlights 2017 Edition | World Tourism Organization".
  3. ^ a b c "WTO/ Member States of Middle East". World Tourism Organization. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
  4. ^ "UNWTO World Tourism Barometer April 2018" (PDF).

External linksEdit

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