France vs Spain: Arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes
France
79.65 million trips
in 2019
Spain
88.51 million trips
in 2024
France rank
2nd
Spain rank
1st
Arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes over time
- France
- Spain
How they compare
Spain currently reports 88.51 million trips against 79.65 million trips in France, a difference of 8.85 million trips.
That makes Spain's figure about 1.1 times France's.
The two have swapped places 2 times across 18 shared years of data; in 1997 it was France ahead.
France ranks 2nd and Spain ranks 1st of 179 countries.
France has averaged higher in every one of the 3 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | France | Spain | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 57.93 million trips | 34.31 million trips | 23.62 million trips | France |
| 2000s | 67.52 million trips | 49.64 million trips | 17.88 million trips | France |
| 2010s | 73.00 million trips | 63.46 million trips | 9.53 million trips | France |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes, France or Spain?
- Spain, at 88.51 million trips against 79.65 million trips in France as of 2024.
- What is the difference in arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes between France and Spain?
- 8.85 million trips, with Spain ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for France and Spain?
- 18 years are reported by both, from 1997 to 2019.
- How do France and Spain rank globally for arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes?
- France ranks 2nd and Spain ranks 1st of 179 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- UN Tourism (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Number of international trips where the main purpose is personal (leisure, visiting friends and relatives, health, etc.) and the visitor stays overnight.