UN Tourism reports that international tourist arrivals (overnight visitors) grew by 4% in 2025, as most destinations worldwide posted solid results. According to the first World Tourism Barometer of the year, an estimated 1.52 billion international tourists were recorded globally in 2025, almost 60 million more than in 2024.
These numbers reflect a return to pre-pandemic growth trends, closer to the 5% average increase per year between 2009 and 2019, says the agency, which notes that results were driven by strong demand, robust performance from large source markets and the ongoing recovery of destinations in Asia and the Pacific.
Increased air connectivity and enhanced visa facilitation also supported international travel in 2025.
UN Tourism Secretary-General Shaikha Alnuwais said: “Demand for travel remained high throughout 2025, despite high inflation in tourism services and uncertainty from geopolitical tensions. We expect this positive trend to continue into 2026 as global economy is expected to remain steady and destinations still lagging behind pre pandemic levels fully recover.”
Key takeaways from this Barometer report
- Europe, the world’s largest destination region, recorded 793 million international tourists in 2025, a 4% increase from 2024 and 6% more than in 2019. Western Europe (+5%) and Southern Mediterranean Europe (+3%) saw robust performance. Central and Eastern Europe rebounded strongly (+6%) though arrivals remained 9% below 2019 levels.
- The Americas (218 million) recorded 1% growth last year, with mixed results across subregions. After a strong first half of 2025, the region saw small declines in Q3 and Q4, partly due to weak results in the United States. South America (+7%) and Central America (+5%) led results by subregion. Some destinations in the Caribbean (+0%) were affected by Hurricane Melissa in the last quarter of the year.
- Africa (81 million) saw an 8% increase in arrivals in 2025, with particularly strong results in North Africa (+11%).
- The Middle East recorded 3% growth in 2025, equivalent to 39% above pre-pandemic levels, the strongest results relative to 2019. The region virtually reached the mark of 100 million international visitors in 2025.
- Arrivals in Asia and the Pacific (331 million) grew 6% last year but are still 9% below 2019 levels as the region continued to rebound. North-East Asia led performance with 13% growth over 2024, while South Asia recovered pre-pandemic levels.
After solid growth in 2024, most destinations continued to enjoy strong results in 2025. Among destination with available data for the twelve months of 2025 several show double-digit growth in international arrivals, among which Brazil (+37%), Egypt (+20%), Morocco (+14%) and Seychelles (+13%). Destinations reporting data through November also saw strong growth, including Bhutan (+30%), Iceland (+29%), Guyana (+24%), South Africa (+19%) and Japan (+17%).
Air
The positive results in international arrivals last year are also reflected in other industry indicators. Both international air capacity and air passenger traffic grew 7% through October 2025 (IATA).
Hotels
Global occupancy in accommodation establishments reached 66% in November 2025, matching the levels of November 2024 (based on STR data).
Outlook for 2026
International tourism is expected to grow 3% to 4% in 2026 compared to 2025, assuming that Asia and the Pacific continues to recover, global economic conditions remain favourable and geopolitical conflicts do not escalate.
International tourism in 2026 will be driven by solid consumer demand, enhanced air connectivity and growing outbound travel from emerging markets. Major international events such as the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics (Italy) and the FIFA World Cup 2026 (Canada, United States and Mexico) will also contribute to international travel.
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