Middle East Leads Global Tourism Recovery in 2024
The Middle East has led the recovery of global tourism with 95 million arrivals recovery and remained the strongest-performing region when compared with 2019, with international arrivals 32% above pre-pandemic levels in 2024, though 1% higher compared to 2023, according to UN Tourism.
Africa registered 74 million arrivals, which was 7% more than in 2019, and 12% more than in 2023. Europe, the world’s largest destination region, saw 747 million international arrivals in 2024 (+1% above 2019 levels and 5% over 2023) supported by strong intraregional demand.
All European sub-regions surpassed pre-pandemic levels, except for Central and Eastern Europe where many destinations are still suffering from the lingering effects of the Russian aggression on Ukraine.
The Americas (213 million) recovered 97% of pre-pandemic arrivals (-3% over 2019), with the Caribbean and Central America already exceeding 2019 levels. Compared to 2023, the region saw 7% growth.
Asia and the Pacific (316 million) continued to experience a rapid recovery in 2024, though arrival numbers were still 87% of pre-pandemic levels, an improvement from 66% at the end of 2023. International arrivals grew 33% in 2024, an increase of 78 million from 2023.
Across the world, countries recorded 1.4 billion international tourist arrivals and 2024 marked the recovery of international tourism from the worst crisis in the sector’s history.
According to the latest World Tourism Barometer from the UN Tourism, an estimated 1.4 billion tourists travelled internationally in 2024, indicating a virtual recovery (99%) of pre-pandemic levels.
This represents an increase of 11% over 2023, or 140 million more international tourist arrivals, with results driven by strong post-pandemic demand, robust performance from large source markets and the ongoing recovery of destinations in Asia and the Pacific.
Most destinations reporting monthly data continued to enjoy strong results in 2024, with a majority exceeding pre-pandemic levels. Available data for the first 10 to 12 months of 2024 shows several destinations reporting double-digit growth compared to 2019.
El Salvador (+81%), Saudi Arabia (+69%), Ethiopia (+40%), Morocco (+35%), Guatemala (+33%) and the Dominican Republic (+32%), all exceeded pre-pandemic levels by far in the full 12 months of 2024.
Qatar (+137%), Albania (+80%), Colombia (+37%), Andorra (+35%), Malta and Serbia (both +29%) enjoyed strong growth through October or November 2024, compared to the same ten or eleven months of 2019.
Tourism Exports
International tourism receipts saw robust growth in 2024 after virtually already reaching pre-pandemic levels in 2023, in real terms as receipts reached $1.6 trillion in 2024, about 3% more than in 2023 and 4% more than in 2019 (real terms), according to preliminary estimates.
As growth stabilises, average spending is gradually returning to pre-pandemic values, from nearly $1,400 per international arrival in 2020 and 2021, to an estimated $1,100 in 2024. This is still above the average of $1,000 of before the pandemic.
Total exports from tourism (including passenger transport) reached a record $1.9 trillion in 2024, about 3% higher than before the pandemic (real terms), according to preliminary estimates.
Several destinations reported outstanding growth in international tourism receipts during the first nine to eleven months of 2024. These include Kuwait (+232%), El Salvador (+206%), Saudi Arabia (+148%), Albania (+136%), Serbia (+98%), Republic of Moldova (+86%), and Canada (+70%), all in local currencies. These countries also enjoyed double-digit growth in receipts in 2024 compared to 2023.
Among the world’s top five tourism earners, the UK (+40%), Spain (+36%), France (+27%) and Italy (+23%) saw robust growth in the first nine to eleven months of 2024, compared with 2019.
Data on international tourism expenditure reflects the same trend, especially among large source markets such as Germany, the United Kingdom (both +36% compared to 2019), the United States (+34%), Italy (+25%) and France (+11%). Expenditure from India remained high in the first half of 2024 (+81% above 2019 levels), after extraordinary growth in 2023.
Positive outlook for 2025
International tourist arrivals are expected to grow 3% to 5% in 2025 compared to 2024, assuming a continued recovery of Asia and the Pacific and solid growth in most other regions. This initial projection assumes global economic conditions remain favourable, inflation continues to recede, and geopolitical conflicts do not escalate.
The outlook reflects a stabilisation of growth rates after a strong rebound in international arrivals in 2023 (+33% vs 2022) and 2024 (+11% vs 2023), the UN Tourism said.
