International trips for personal vs. business and professional reasons in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland: International trips for personal vs. business and professional reasons was 31.30 million trips in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
31.30 million trips
Change on year
up 2.1%
World rank
8th
of 179 countries
All-time high
31.59 million trips
in 2019
All-time low
5.00 million trips
in 2021
Years of data
29
1995–2024

International trips for personal vs. business and professional reasons in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, 1995–2024

010.0M20.0M30.0M1995200920241995: 17.0M trips1996: 18.2M trips1997: 18.5M trips1998: 18.2M trips1999: 17.6M trips2000: 17.2M trips2001: 15.4M trips2002: 16.3M trips2003: 17.1M trips2004: 19.7M trips2005: 21.2M trips2006: 23.0M trips2007: 23.3M trips2008: 23.2M trips2009: 23.6M trips2010: 22.8M trips2011: 23.8M trips2012: 23.9M trips2013: 24.9M trips2014: 26.1M trips2015: 27.2M trips2016: 29.1M trips2017: 31.5M trips2018: 30.9M trips2019: 31.6M trips2021: 5.0M trips2022: 25.4M trips2023: 30.7M trips2024: 31.3M trips

Source: UN Tourism (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in trips.

Analysis

The most recent figure for international trips for personal vs. business and professional reasons in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is 31.30 million trips, measured in 2024.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 2.1% on the previous year and up 19.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, international trips for personal vs. business and professional reasons in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland peaked at 31.59 million trips in 2019 and was at its lowest, 5.00 million trips, in 2021.

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland ranks 8th of 179 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 29 years of available data.

International trips for personal vs. business and professional reasons in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, year by year

Annual values for International trips for personal vs. business and professional reasons in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, 1995 to 2024.
Year trips Change
1995 16.98 million trips
1996 18.24 million trips +7.4%
1997 18.46 million trips +1.2%
1998 18.16 million trips -1.6%
1999 17.63 million trips -2.9%
2000 17.20 million trips -2.4%
2001 15.45 million trips -10.2%
2002 16.34 million trips +5.8%
2003 17.12 million trips +4.8%
2004 19.70 million trips +15.0%
2005 21.20 million trips +7.6%
2006 23.00 million trips +8.5%
2007 23.28 million trips +1.2%
2008 23.20 million trips -0.3%
2009 23.62 million trips +1.8%
2010 22.85 million trips -3.3%
2011 23.77 million trips +4.1%
2012 23.93 million trips +0.7%
2013 24.87 million trips +3.9%
2014 26.13 million trips +5.1%
2015 27.19 million trips +4.1%
2016 29.11 million trips +7.1%
2017 31.51 million trips +8.3%
2018 30.92 million trips -1.9%
2019 31.59 million trips +2.2%
2021 5.00 million trips -84.2%
2022 25.44 million trips +408.9%
2023 30.65 million trips +20.5%
2024 31.30 million trips +2.1%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 17.89 million trips 16.98 million trips 18.46 million trips 5
2000s 20.01 million trips 15.45 million trips 23.62 million trips 10
2010s 27.19 million trips 22.85 million trips 31.59 million trips 10
2020s 23.10 million trips 5.00 million trips 31.30 million trips 4

Countries ranked near United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

  1. 5 Mexico 46.05 million trips compare
  2. 6 Hungary 44.31 million trips compare
  3. 7 China 42.83 million trips compare
  4. 9 Denmark 30.29 million trips compare
  5. 10 Saudi Arabia 27.75 million trips compare
  6. 11 Russian Federation 26.21 million trips compare

See the full ranking of 179 places →

More reference data data for United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

All data for United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland →

Frequently asked questions

What is international trips for personal vs. business and professional reasons in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
International trips for personal vs. business and professional reasons in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland was 31.30 million trips in 2024, according to UN Tourism (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest international trips for personal vs. business and professional reasons recorded in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
The highest recorded value was 31.59 million trips in 2019.
What is the lowest international trips for personal vs. business and professional reasons recorded in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
The lowest recorded value was 5.00 million trips in 2021.
How does United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland rank for international trips for personal vs. business and professional reasons?
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland ranks 8th out of 179 countries with data for 2024.
Is international trips for personal vs. business and professional reasons rising or falling in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
Over the last ten years it is up 19.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland data come from?
The figures come from UN Tourism (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of International trips for personal vs. business and professional reasons. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 29 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

International trips for personal vs. business and professional reasons in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Statizoid, drawing on UN Tourism (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 31 August 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/international-arrivals-for-personal-vs-business-and-professional-reasons/united-kingdom/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/international-arrivals-for-personal-vs-business-and-professional-reasons/united-kingdom/">International trips for personal vs. business and professional reasons in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
International trips for personal vs. business and professional reasons
Unit
trips
Source
UN Tourism (2025) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
179 places, 4,054 data points, 1995–2024
Last refreshed

Number of international trips where the main purpose is personal (leisure, visiting friends and relatives, health, etc.) and the visitor stays overnight.