According to the latest edition of UN Tourism’s World Tourism Barometer, Africa is leading the way in regional arrivals in 2025 as the global tourism sector blasts past 1 billion travellers in only the first nine months of the year. Brazil, meanwhile, is surging even higher, taking top spot as an individual country.
The report counted 1.1 billion tourists travelling internationally between January and September this year, about 50 million more than in the same period of 2024. The third quarter saw a 4% increase over 2024 with a strong Northern Hemisphere summer season.
Africa strongest performance
Key regional takeaways from the Barometer include:
- Africa saw a 10% increase in arrivals through September. Both North Africa (+11%) and Sub-Saharan Africa (+10%) recorded double-digit growth in arrivals.
- Europe, the world’s largest destination region, saw 625 million international tourists between January and September 2025, a 4% increase from the same months in 2024. All European subregions enjoyed solid results during the third quarter, reflecting a strong summer season. Western Europe (+5%) and Southern Mediterranean Europe (+3%) saw robust performance, while Northern Europe (-1%) recorded more modest results. Central and Eastern Europe continued to rebound strongly (+8%), though arrivals remained 11% below 2019 levels.
- The Americas recorded 2% growth this period, with a 3% increase in Q1 and Q2 but a slight drop in Q3 (-1%). Results among subregions were mixed. South America (+9%) enjoyed the best performance, despite a flat third quarter. North America (-1%) saw weaker results partly due to small declines in the U.S. and Canada. Arrivals in Central America increased 3% through September, while the Caribbean (+1%) recorded comparatively more modest growth.
- Arrivals in the Middle East grew 2% in January-September compared to the same period in 2024. This represents 33% more arrivals than in 2019, the strongest regional results relative to the pre-pandemic year.
- Arrivals in Asia and the Pacific grew 8% in the first nine months of 2025, reaching 90% of pre-pandemic numbers (-10% compared to January-September 2019) as the region continues to recover. North-East Asia stood out with a 17% increase in arrivals relative to 2024 but remained 12% below 2019 levels.
- As for individual countries, some of the highest growth rates in arrivals in January-September 2025 were recorded in Brazil (+45% versus 2024), Vietnam and Egypt (both +21%), as well as Ethiopia and Japan (both +18%). South Africa reported 17% growth, Sri Lanka and Mongolia both 16%, and Morocco 14%. All of these destinations have already surpassed 2019 levels.
According to UN Tourism’s projection in January this year, international tourist arrivals are expected to grow 3% to 5% in 2025. While results through September are in line with UN Tourism’s forecast, factors such as high travel prices and a challenging geopolitical environment remain important downside risks.
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