International tourism is tourism that crosses national borders. Globalization has made tourism a popular global leisure activity. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes". The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that up to 500,000 people are in flight at any one time.Swine flu prompts EU warning on travel to US. The Guardian. 28 April 2009.
In 2010, international tourism reached US$919B, growing 6.5% over 2009, corresponding to an increase in real terms of 4.7%. In 2010, there were over 940 million international tourist arrivals worldwide. By 2016 that number had risen to 1,235 million, producing 1,220 billion USD in destination spending. The COVID-19 crisis had significant negative effects on international tourism significantly slowing the overall increasing trend.
International tourism has significant impacts on the environment, exacerbated in part by the problems created by air travel but also by other issues, including wealthy tourists bringing lifestyles that stress local infrastructure, water and trash systems among others.
History As a result of the late-2000s recession, international travel demand suffered a strong slowdown from the second half of 2008 through the end of 2009. This negative trend intensified during 2009, exacerbated in some countries due to the outbreak of the H1N1 influenza virus, resulting in a worldwide decline of 4.2% in 2009 to 880 million international tourists arrivals, and a 5.7% decline in international tourism receipts.
COVID-19 International tourism recovered gradually from 2021 as travel restrictions eased. According to UN Tourism (formerly the UNWTO), around 1.3 billion international arrivals were recorded in 2023, about 88% of pre-pandemic levels. In 2024 an estimated 1.4 billion tourists travelled internationally — roughly 99% of the 2019 level and 11% higher than 2023 — marking a virtual return to pre-pandemic volumes, while international tourism receipts reached about US$1.6 trillion
Some people have taken advantage of airlines drastically reducing their fares to travel for leisure despite multiple warnings to remain at home, along with two-week self-quarantine requirements upon arrival or return from travel.
Together with a decreased willingness to travel, the restrictions have had a negative economic impact on the travel sector in those regions. A possible long-term impact has been a decline of business travel and international conferencing, and the rise of their virtual, online equivalents. Concerns have been raised over the effectiveness of travel restrictions to contain the spread of COVID-19.Rowen, I. (2020). The transformational festival as a subversive toolbox for a transformed tourism: lessons from Burning Man for a Covid-19 world. Tourism Geographies, 22(3), 695–702.
In Cambodia, Foreign arrivals in March 2020 fell by 65% year-on-year. Angkor Wat, usually crowded with thousands of tourists per day, was left almost deserted, with an average of 22 ticket sales per day for the whole Angkor National Park during April 2020. In Vietnam, Foreign arrivals in April 2020 fell by 98% year-on-year.
Rankings
Total volume of cross-border tourist travel International tourist arrivals reached 1.035 billion in 2012, up from over 996 million in 2011, and 952 million in 2010. In 2011 and 2012, international travel demand continued to recover from the losses resulting from the late-2000s recession, where tourism suffered a strong slowdown from the second half of 2008 through the end of 2009. After a 5% increase in the first half of 2008, growth in international tourist arrivals moved into negative territory in the second half of 2008, and ended up only 2% for the year, compared to a 7% increase in 2007. The negative trend intensified during 2009, exacerbated in some countries due to the outbreak of the H1N1 influenza virus, resulting in a worldwide decline of 4.2% in 2009 to 880 million international tourists arrivals, and a 5.7% decline in international tourism receipts.
World's top tourism destinations
In 2025, there were 1.523 billion international tourist arrivals worldwide, with a growth of 3.96% as compared to 2024. The World Tourism Organization reports the following ten destinations as the most visited in terms of the number of international travelers in 2025. + Rank Destination International tourist arrivals million (2025) International tourist arrivals million (2024) Change (2024 to 2025) (%) 1 - 102 N/A2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 - 38.2 N/A
Nights spent in accommodation facilities (hotels, campsites, etc.) RankDestinationRegionWTONightsspent(2019)1 North America 345,4 millions2Europe299,1 millions3Europe220,6 millions4Asia196,2 millions5Europe161,3 millions6Europe136,7 millions
International tourism receipts The World Tourism Organization reports that international tourism receipts were US$1.7 trillion in 2018, an increase in real terms of 4% over 2017. The top ten tourism earners in 2018 were: RankCountry/AreaInternational tourism receipts (2018)1$214.00 billion2$74.00 billion3$67.00 billion4$63.00 billion5$52.00 billion6$49.00 billion7$45.00 billion8$43.00 billion9$41.00 billion10$40.00 billion
International tourism expenditure The World Tourism Organization reports the following countries as the ten biggest spenders on international tourism for the year 2018. RankCountryInternational tourism expenditure (2018)1$277 billion2$144 billion3$94 billion4$76 billion5$48 billion6$37 billion7$35 billion8$33 billion9$32 billion10$30 billion
Euromonitor International Top City Destinations Ranking Euromonitor International rated these the world's most visited cities by international tourists in 2017: RankCityCountryInternational tourist arrivals1Hong Kong27.88 million2Bangkok22.45 million3London19.82 million4Singapore17.61 million5Cairo17.33 million6Paris15.83 million7Dubai15.79 million8New York City13.10 million9Macau12.84 million10Kuala Lumpur12.47 million
World Travel and Tourism Council +Countries showing strong international travel and tourism growth between 2010 and 2016RankCountryPercentage1 Myanmar73.5%2 Sudan49.8%3 Azerbaijan36.4%4 Qatar34.1%5 São Tomé and Príncipe30.1%6 Sri Lanka26.4%7 Cameroon25.5%8 Georgia22.7%9 Iceland20.0%10 Kyrgyzstan19.5% +Countries that performed best in fastest growing tourism and travel industry in 2016RankCountryPercentage1 Azerbaijan46.1%2 Mongolia24.4%3 Iceland20.1%4 Cyprus15.4%5 Kazakhstan15.2%6 Moldova14.2%7 Costa Rica12.1%8 Georgia11.2%9 Sri Lanka10.7%10 Thailand10.7%
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