China has regained its position as the top international tourism spender in 2023 as the Asia-Pacific region consolidates its recovery from the impact of the pandemic, according to the United Nations Tourism Organization, a specialized agency of the United Nations.
The United States topped the list of top spending countries in 2022. The top most visited destinations were France, Spain and the United States.
China’s outbound travel spending will reach $196.5 billion in 2023, surpassing the United States ($150 billion), Germany ($112 billion), the United Kingdom ($11 billion), and France ($49 billion). The top 10 spending countries in 2023 are Canada, Italy, India, the Russian Federation, and South Korea. India has jumped from 14th place in 2019 to 8th place, confirming the country’s growing importance as a source market, while Italy has risen from 10th to 7th place.
France solidifies its position as the world’s most visited travel destination with 100 million international tourist arrivals in 2023. Spain comes in second with 85 million, followed by the United States (66 million), Italy (57 million) and Turkey, which completes the top five with 55 million international tourists.
Mexico, the United Kingdom, Germany, Greece and Austria round out the top 10 most-visited destinations for 2023. Compared to before the pandemic, Italy, Turkey, Mexico, Germany and Austria have all moved up one spot, while the United Kingdom has risen from 10th to 7th and Greece from 13th to 9th.
The United States will top the rankings for international tourism receipts, earning $176 billion in 2023, followed by Spain ($92 billion), the United Kingdom ($74 billion), France ($69 billion) and Italy ($56 billion).
Following the above, destinations set to earn the most revenue from international tourism in 2023 include the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Australia, Canada, Japan, Germany, Saudi Arabia, Macau (China), India and Mexico, completing the list of the top 15 countries by tourism revenue.
Among the risers in the rankings for top income earners, the UK jumped from fifth place before the pandemic to third place, the United Arab Emirates from 13 to sixth, Turkey from 12 to seventh, Canada from 15 to ninth, Saudi Arabia from 27 to 12, and Mexico from 17 to 15.
Croatia (from 32nd to 25th), Morocco (from 41st to 31st) and the Dominican Republic (from 43rd to 34th) have also moved up in the rankings of the top 50 earners for 2023, as have Qatar (from 51st to 37th) and Colombia (from 50th to 44th).
A full recovery is expected globally in 2024
According to the latest World Tourism Indicators, international tourist arrivals are expected to recover to 89% of 2019 levels in 2023 and 97% in the first quarter of 2024. UN Tourism’s 2024 forecast predicts that international tourism will recover fully, with arrivals increasing 2% above 2019 levels, supported by strong demand, improving air connectivity and the continued recovery of China and other key Asian markets.
Total export receipts from international tourism, including both receipts and passenger traffic, will reach an estimated USD 1.7 trillion in 2023, around 96% of pre-pandemic levels in real terms. Tourism direct GDP will recover to pre-pandemic levels in 2023, reaching an estimated USD 3.3 trillion, equivalent to 3% of global GDP.
