UN Tourism estimated 1.52 billion international arrivals in 2025
Retrospective: January’s estimates showed growth with uneven regional recovery.
- Event / announcement date
- 2026-01-20
- Earliest linked source date
- 2026-01-20
- NewsTumble first published
- 2026-10-25T22:01:35Z
- NewsTumble updated
- 2026-10-25T22:01:35Z
International tourist arrivals rose an estimated 4% in 2025 to 1.52 billion, UN Tourism reported on January 20, 2026. That was almost 60 million more arrivals than in 2024. The agency’s measure covers overnight international visitors, so the headline is an arrivals estimate rather than a count of distinct people who travelled. [1]
Regional totals showed different recovery paths. Europe recorded 793 million arrivals, up 4% from 2024 and 6% above 2019. Africa’s arrivals rose 8% to 81 million. Asia and the Pacific grew 6% to 331 million but remained 9% below its 2019 level, showing that global growth did not mean every region had fully recovered. [1]
The January release projected another 3% to 4% increase in 2026, conditional on continued recovery in Asia and the Pacific, favourable economic conditions and no escalation in conflicts. That was a forecast at publication, not a verified 2026 result. The agency’s expert survey identified travel costs, economic conditions and geopolitical risks as challenges, qualifications that matter when interpreting the growth headline. [1]
The source
- UN Tourism: International tourist arrivals up 4% in 2025 reflecting strong travel demand around the world ↗
Source published 2026-01-20 · reviewed 2026-10-25
About this item: Retrospective source brief. No first-hand reporting or independent testing is claimed. Corrections policy.
