Strong global travel demand drives rise in international arrivals in 2025
According to the first World Tourism Barometer of 2026, international tourist arrivals (overnight visitors) grew by 4% in 2025, as most destinations worldwide posted solid results.
The Barometer reported that an estimated 1.52 billion international tourists were recorded globally in 2025, almost 60 million more than in 2024.
And it said that those numbers reflect a return to pre-pandemic growth trends, closer to the 5% average increase per year between 2009 and 2019.
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.
Commenting on the results, UN Tourism Secretary-General Shaikha Alnuwais said that: “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 the global economy is expected to remain steady and destinations still lagging behind pre-pandemic levels fully recover.”
The World Tourism Barometer also noted that the positive results in international arrivals last year are also reflected in other industry indicators.
As shown in the UN Tourism Data Dashboard, both international air capacity and air passenger traffic grew 7% through October 2025 (IATA).
Global occupancy in accommodation establishments reached 66% in November 2025, matching the levels of November 2024 (based on STR data).
As well, monthly data show strong visitor spending throughout 2025, with preliminary estimates pointing at USD 1.9 trillion in international tourism receipts globally, a 5% increase from 2024.
As for the outlook for 2026, international tourism is expected to grow 3% to 4% in the coming year compared to 2025, assuming that Asia and the Pacific continues to recover, global economic conditions remain favourable and geopolitical conflicts do not escalate.
Uncertainty from current geopolitical tensions and conflicts pose an increasing risk for tourism in 2026.
However, it also reported that in 2026, international tourism 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.
