Overview
- UN Tourism reports international arrivals rose 4% from 2024 to a record 1.52 billion, with receipts estimated at about US$1.9 trillion and total tourism export revenues at US$2.2 trillion.
- Europe welcomed 793 million visitors (+4% year over year, 6% above 2019), Asia-Pacific reached 331 million (+6%, about 91% of 2019), and Africa climbed to 81 million (+8%), while the Middle East grew 3% to nearly 100 million.
- The Americas recorded 218 million arrivals (+1%), with North America down 1.4% to 135.4 million, a decline UN Tourism partly attributes to weak U.S. results.
- Industry group WTTC says foreign visitors to the United States fell about 6% in 2025 and cites policy and perception factors that diverted travelers toward destinations such as Spain, France, and Japan.
- Air capacity and passenger traffic increased 7% through October 2025 and global hotel occupancy held at 66% in November, with UN Tourism noting potential 2026 boosts from the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics and the FIFA World Cup.