Ranked: Which countries gained the most tourists from 2019 to 2025?
Global Tourism Resurgence: Nations Leading the Recovery Since 2019
Usagevpn.com – Ranked - The worldwide travel landscape has undergone remarkable transformation over recent years, with certain destinations standing out as exceptional performers. According to fresh analysis, Saudi Arabia has emerged as the undisputed champion of tourist growth since the pre-pandemic era of 2019. This remarkable achievement places it ahead of other notable contenders including Morocco, Egypt, and Brazil, all of which have attracted significantly more international visitors as travelers increasingly explore destinations beyond conventional vacation favorites.
European nations are simultaneously experiencing their own period of tourism renaissance. Countries such as Norway, Portugal, Spain, and France are now welcoming higher volumes of international guests compared to pre-pandemic figures. The comprehensive data compilation comes from Visual Capitalist, a prominent data visualization organization, which drew upon statistics compiled by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Their research illuminates the most substantial shifts in visitor arrivals spanning from 2019 through 2025, effectively capturing the dramatic contrast between pandemic-era disruptions and subsequent recovery phases.
Regional Champions of Tourist Growth
While three European nations secured positions within the top ten performers, the most impressive gains originated from countries across the Middle East, North Africa, and South America. Saudi Arabia's extraordinary 67 percent increase over the six-year timeframe reflects massive investments channeled into developing its tourism infrastructure and attractions. Morocco followed with a 53 percent surge, while Egypt achieved a 47 percent increase in international arrivals during the same period.
South America demonstrated equally compelling results. Brazil recorded growth of 46 percent, closely matched by Colombia at 45 percent. Within Asia, Japan represents the sole nation from the continent to break into the top ten, achieving a 34 percent increase in visitor numbers. Chile, positioned just behind Japan, experienced a 33 percent rise in international tourism.
The European contingent in the top ten includes Norway at 28 percent growth, Serbia with 27 percent, and Denmark achieving 22 percent. These figures underscore how European destinations have successfully navigated the challenging recovery period following global travel restrictions.
Destinations Facing Continued Challenges
Although Europe has largely recovered to 2019 tourism levels, the continent's performance generally lagged behind the more dramatic gains observed in Middle Eastern and North African markets. Beyond the top-performing nations, several European countries recorded more modest increases. Portugal, Spain, and France all demonstrated notable improvements in international visitor numbers between 2019 and 2025.
Conversely, certain destinations experienced declines rather than growth. Germany recorded a 6 percent reduction in tourist arrivals compared to 2019, while Italy saw a 5 percent decrease. Ireland experienced particularly severe setbacks, with a 32 percent drop-off placing it second globally for tourist losses, trailing only Israel. This dramatic decline for Ireland highlights how certain markets struggled to regain their pre-pandemic visitor volumes.
Ongoing geopolitical conflicts continue to exert substantial pressure on tourism sectors. Israel has faced particularly devastating consequences, with international arrivals plummeting by 71 percent amid the conflict in Gaza. This represents the most severe decline documented across the entire dataset. North American destinations also experienced setbacks, with the United States recording a 14 percent decline and Canada showing an 11 percent reduction in tourist numbers compared to 2019 levels.
South American nations beyond Brazil and Colombia faced headwinds as well. Argentina's tourist numbers fell to 23 percent below 2019 levels, while Peru experienced a 22 percent decline. The Asia-Pacific region similarly struggled with recovery, with Thailand suffering the hardest blow at 17 percent below pre-pandemic totals. New Zealand, Australia, and Indonesia experienced more gradual recoveries at 9 percent, 6 percent, and 4 percent below their 2019 figures respectively, largely attributed to prolonged border closures during the pandemic period.
The data reveals that most destinations on the continent returned to or exceeded their pre-pandemic tourism levels, though these gains were typically lower than those recorded in the likes of the Middle East and North Africa.
These comprehensive findings from Visual Capitalist and OECD provide valuable insights into how global tourism patterns have fundamentally shifted, revealing which nations have successfully capitalized on changing traveler preferences and which continue to face significant challenges in their recovery journeys.