International tourism, number of arrivals in France
France: International tourism, number of arrivals was 117.11 million in 2020. ▲ Rising
International tourism, number of arrivals in France, 1996–2020
Source: Yearbook of Tourism Statistics, Compendium of Tourism Statistics and data files, UN Tourism.
Analysis
France recorded 117.11 million for international tourism, number of arrivals in 2020. That is the lowest value across all 19 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 46.2% on the previous year and down 38.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, international tourism, number of arrivals in France peaked at 217.88 million in 2019 and was at its lowest, 117.11 million, in 2020.
France ranks 1st of 201 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 19 years of available data.
International tourism, number of arrivals in France, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 148.26 million | — |
| 1997 | 157.55 million | +6.3% |
| 2004 | 190.28 million | +20.8% |
| 2005 | 185.83 million | -2.3% |
| 2006 | 193.88 million | +4.3% |
| 2007 | 193.32 million | -0.3% |
| 2008 | 193.57 million | +0.1% |
| 2009 | 192.37 million | -0.6% |
| 2010 | 189.83 million | -1.3% |
| 2011 | 196.59 million | +3.6% |
| 2012 | 197.52 million | +0.5% |
| 2013 | 204.41 million | +3.5% |
| 2014 | 206.60 million | +1.1% |
| 2015 | 203.30 million | -1.6% |
| 2016 | 203.04 million | -0.1% |
| 2017 | 207.27 million | +2.1% |
| 2018 | 212.00 million | +2.3% |
| 2019 | 217.88 million | +2.8% |
| 2020 | 117.11 million | -46.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 152.91 million | 148.26 million | 157.55 million | 2 |
| 2000s | 191.54 million | 185.83 million | 193.88 million | 6 |
| 2010s | 203.84 million | 189.83 million | 217.88 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 117.11 million | 117.11 million | 117.11 million | 1 |
Countries ranked near France
More private sector data for France
- Merchandise trade 43.7% (2025)
- Food imports 10.6% (2024)
- Manufactures imports 72.9% (2024)
- Merchandise imports 786.43 billion current US$ (2025)
- Food exports 13.3% (2024)
- Manufactures exports 78.0% (2024)
- Merchandise exports 683.10 billion current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 9,940 current US$ per person (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.2029 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), annual growth rate 6.65 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is international tourism, number of arrivals in France?
- International tourism, number of arrivals in France was 117.11 million in 2020, 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 France?
- The highest recorded value was 217.88 million in 2019.
- What is the lowest international tourism, number of arrivals recorded in France?
- The lowest recorded value was 117.11 million in 2020.
- How does France rank for international tourism, number of arrivals?
- France ranks 1st out of 201 countries with data for 2020.
- Is international tourism, number of arrivals rising or falling in France?
- Over the last ten years it is down 38.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this France 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 — 19 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.