THE MOST FREQUENTED COUNTRIES
Added on: 13th Sep 2016
UNITED KINGDOM
32.6 MILLION
Though the sun set on the British Empire many decades ago,
it hasn’t stopped the proliferation of British culture around
the world and the United Kingdom from making the list as the
eighth most visited country in the world with 32.6 million
visitors. London, the economic powerhouse of Europe,
brought in half of those numbers alone. Tourists looking for
thrills beyond the fashion, museums, and overall culture of
London headed further afield to the rugged serenity of the
Scottish Highlands, the meadows and mountains of Wales
and the tumultuous city of Belfast: home to Titanic’s shipyard.
GERMANY
33 MILLION
The second most-popular destination for migrants after the
United States, Germany is also the most populous country in
Europe. Germany has a compelling history spanning thousands
of years. A birthplace of the Protestant Reformation, Germany
boasts beautiful churches such as the ones in Cologne and
Berlin and is a world leader for industry, technology
and counter-culture.
TURKEY
39.8 MILLION
Turkey’s Istanbul, the city straddles two continents and is the
largest urban area in Europe and the Middle East with over
14.4 million residents. Though over 10 million tourists visited
this crossroads-of-the-world, the rest of the country drew in
at least another 30 million thanks to its myriad of World Heritage
Sites such as Cappadocia and Troy and its two of the
Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.
ITALY
48.6 MILLION
Italy is a favourite destination for millions of tourists
(48.6 million, in fact) due to its temperate climate, extensive
and dramatic coastline, strong culinary heritage and host of
archaeological sites. (It has 51 World Heritage Sites, the most
of any country.) Experiencing one of the most fragmented
histories of any country, Italy emerged from numerous
conquests and invasions over thousands of years as the
state we now know just after World War II. The Italian diaspora,
largely from unindustrialized southern Italy, has
fuelled a global dispersion of and interest in Italian culture.
CHINA
55.6 MILLION
Though seven of the top ten visited cities in the world are in Asia,
only one East Asian country (bar Russia) has made it onto the
top 10 most visited countries. China’s inclusion should come
as no surprise. One of the original cradles of human civilization,
the global powerhouse is the most populous country
(1.35 billion people) on Earth. China has been cited as one of
the most complex economies (for over 2,000 years) due to its
cyclical history of prosperity and decline. As the world’s largest
exporter (and second-largest importer), it’s no doubt China
will see substantially more than 55.6 million (in 2014)
tourists year-over-year in the near future.
SPAIN
65 MILLION
One of only three countries boasting both Mediterranean and
Atlantic coastlines, Spain brought in 65 million tourists last year.
Drawing in millions of tourists from its former colonies in
Latin America and its position as the major European trade
hub for Latin America. Such numbers have made Spain the
second-largest tourism destination in the world in terms of
spending.
UNITED STATES
74.8 MILLION
Thought the United States would clinch the top spot? It’s just off,
coming in at number two with nearly 75 million tourists in 2014.
The world’s largest economy by GDP (both nominal and real),
America is also one of the world’s most multicultural countries
due to hundreds of years of immigration. Despite being the
second most visited country, the United States had tourists
spending more than in any other country, 177.2 billion dollars
in 2014 compared to 65.2 billion in number two Spain.
FRANCE
83.7 MILLION
Paris’ placed as the fifth most visited city in the world hasn’t
stopped the country of France as a whole from clinching the
top spot and by a hefty margin. Receiving almost 10 million
more tourists than the U.S., France held the second-largest
colonial empire in history, a major factor in her close
relations with many countries and territories around the globe.
Despite the 15 million who visited Paris, France holds deeper
appeal for tourists in its lush wine regions, coastal resorts and
small villages dotted throughout the country, bringing in a
cumulative total of 83.7 million visitors.
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