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Tourists Collectively Spend More Money in This Country Than Any Other
Caroline Schagrin
Contributor
Caroline graduated from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University. She works on both the editorial and video team at TPG and is interested in people, places, culture, and of course, travel.
Sept. 25, 2018
•
2 min read
Tourists Collectively Spend More Money in This Country Than Any Other
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Every traveler knows that in some destinations, tourists are bound to shell out a little more cash than others.
But some countries attract such massive amounts of travelers, they can rake in top dollar from the tourism industry by sheer force of numbers.
New data from the World Tourism Organization shows the top countries making the most money from tourism. They are also -- unsurprisingly -- the countries with the highest number of international arrivals. The trade group calculated the total amount of money spent by international-inbound tourists on transportation, goods and services to rank the top nations banking the most profit from visitors. The data also revealed that international tourist arrivals grew 6.8% globally in 2017 — marking the biggest increase since 2010.
When looking at tourism expenditures in US dollars, most tourism spending is happening in Western countries and some Asian destinations like Japan, Thailand and Macao. With $211 billion in international receipts, the US ranked No. 1 and makes up for 16% of the entire world's tourist expenditures, even though US tourist arrivals decreased by 3.8% in 2017.
The data also discovered that four out of five travelers will stick to traveling within their own regions and that Europe generates almost half of the world's international arrivals. Within the Americas, North America accounts for two-thirds of the regions arrivals and expenditures. Additionally, out of the top 10 countries with highest tourist receipts and arrivals, seven of them make an appearance on both lists.
Top 10 International Receipts
- USA: $211B
- Spain: $68B
- France: $61B
- Thailand: $57B
- United Kingdom: $51B
- Italy: $44B
- Australia: $42B
- Germany: $40B
- Macao (China): $36B
- Japan: $34B
The combined value of these countries make up almost half the world's tourism expenditures.
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Top 10 International Arrivals
- France: 87M
- Spain: 82M
- USA: 76M
- China: 61M
- Italy: 58M
- Mexico: 39M
- United Kingdom: 38M
- Turkey: 38M
- Germany: 38M
- Thailand: 35M
Featured image by SOLSTOCK/GETTY IMAGES
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Best for businesses with high spending
TPG Editor‘s Rating
Go to reviewCard Rating is based on the opinion of TPG‘s editors and is not influenced by the card issuer.
Rewards Rate
| 2X miles | 2 miles per dollar on every purchase |
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- Receive up to a $120 credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck®. Enjoy access to 1,300+ airport lounges worldwide, including Capital One Lounge locations and Priority Pass™ lounges, after enrollment
- Enjoy a $100 experience credit and other premium benefits with every hotel and vacation rental booked from the Premier Collection
- This is a pay-in-full card, so your balance is due in full every month
- Top rated mobile app