International tourism, number of arrivals in European Union
European Union: International tourism, number of arrivals was 968.87 million in 2019. ▲ Rising
International tourism, number of arrivals in European Union, 1995–2019
Source: Yearbook of Tourism Statistics, Compendium of Tourism Statistics and data files, UN Tourism.
Analysis
European Union recorded 968.87 million for international tourism, number of arrivals in 2019. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.
That represents a change of up 3.2% on the previous year and up 39.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, international tourism, number of arrivals in European Union peaked at 968.87 million in 2019 and was at its lowest, 543.50 million, in 1995.
That places European Union 7th out of 46 groups with data for 2019, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.
International tourism, number of arrivals in European Union, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 543.50 million | — |
| 1996 | 568.08 million | +4.5% |
| 1997 | 592.86 million | +4.4% |
| 1998 | 608.64 million | +2.7% |
| 1999 | 622.20 million | +2.2% |
| 2000 | 650.17 million | +4.5% |
| 2001 | 616.08 million | -5.2% |
| 2002 | 615.27 million | -0.1% |
| 2003 | 625.66 million | +1.7% |
| 2004 | 658.49 million | +5.2% |
| 2005 | 678.88 million | +3.1% |
| 2006 | 711.02 million | +4.7% |
| 2007 | 723.20 million | +1.7% |
| 2008 | 717.09 million | -0.8% |
| 2009 | 695.77 million | -3.0% |
| 2010 | 708.41 million | +1.8% |
| 2011 | 743.02 million | +4.9% |
| 2012 | 759.68 million | +2.2% |
| 2013 | 784.37 million | +3.2% |
| 2014 | 809.62 million | +3.2% |
| 2015 | 835.94 million | +3.3% |
| 2016 | 870.37 million | +4.1% |
| 2017 | 910.87 million | +4.7% |
| 2018 | 938.49 million | +3.0% |
| 2019 | 968.87 million | +3.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 587.06 million | 543.50 million | 622.20 million | 5 |
| 2000s | 669.16 million | 615.27 million | 723.20 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 832.96 million | 708.41 million | 968.87 million | 10 |
Countries ranked near European Union
More private sector data for European Union
- Merchandise trade 70.9% (2025)
- Food imports 10.7% (2024)
- Manufactures imports 70.7% (2024)
- Merchandise imports 7.41 trillion current US$ (2025)
- Food exports 11.0% (2024)
- Manufactures exports 76.6% (2024)
- Merchandise exports 7.66 trillion current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 16,988 current US$ per person (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.3608 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), annual growth rate 6.82 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is international tourism, number of arrivals in European Union?
- International tourism, number of arrivals in European Union was 968.87 million in 2019, according to Yearbook of Tourism Statistics, Compendium of Tourism Statistics and data files, UN Tourism.
- What is the highest international tourism, number of arrivals recorded in European Union?
- The highest recorded value was 968.87 million in 2019.
- What is the lowest international tourism, number of arrivals recorded in European Union?
- The lowest recorded value was 543.50 million in 1995.
- How does European Union rank for international tourism, number of arrivals?
- European Union ranks 7th out of 46 groups with data for 2019.
- Is international tourism, number of arrivals rising or falling in European Union?
- Over the last ten years it is up 39.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this European Union data come from?
- The figures come from Yearbook of Tourism Statistics, Compendium of Tourism Statistics and data files, UN Tourism, published as part of International tourism, number of arrivals. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
International inbound tourists (overnight visitors) are the number of tourists who travel to a country other than that in which they have their usual residence, but outside their usual environment, for a period not exceeding 12 months and whose main purpose in visiting is other than an activity remunerated from within the country visited. When data on number of tourists are not available, the number of visitors, which includes tourists, same-day visitors, cruise passengers, and crew members, is shown instead. Sources and collection methods for arrivals differ across countries. In some cases data are from border statistics (police, immigration, and the like) and supplemented by border surveys. In other cases data are from tourism accommodation establishments. For some countries number of arrivals is limited to arrivals by air and for others to arrivals staying in hotels. Some countries include arrivals of nationals residing abroad while others do not. Caution should thus be used in comparing arrivals across countries. The data on inbound tourists refer to the number of arrivals, not to the number of people traveling. Thus a person who makes several trips to a country during a given period is counted each time as a new arrival.