International tourist departures in Belgium

Belgium: International tourist departures was 17.91 million departures in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
17.91 million departures
Change on year
up 3.6%
World rank
14th
of 112 countries
All-time high
17.91 million departures
in 2024
All-time low
5.64 million departures
in 1996
Years of data
29
1996–2024

International tourist departures in Belgium, 1996–2024

5.0M7.5M10.0M12.5M15.0M17.5M1996201020241996: 5.6M departures1997: 7.5M departures1998: 7.8M departures1999: 6.4M departures2000: 7.9M departures2001: 6.6M departures2002: 6.8M departures2003: 7.3M departures2004: 8.8M departures2005: 9.3M departures2006: 7.9M departures2007: 8.4M departures2008: 8.9M departures2009: 8.8M departures2010: 8.8M departures2011: 9.7M departures2012: 9.6M departures2013: 10.8M departures2014: 11.0M departures2015: 10.8M departures2016: 13.4M departures2017: 14.6M departures2018: 15.6M departures2019: 17.3M departures2020: 7.1M departures2021: 8.6M departures2022: 16.0M departures2023: 17.3M departures2024: 17.9M departures

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

Analysis

In 2024, international tourist departures in Belgium stood at 17.91 million departures. That is the highest value across all 29 years on record.

That represents a change of up 3.6% on the previous year and up 63.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, international tourist departures in Belgium peaked at 17.91 million departures in 2024 and was at its lowest, 5.64 million departures, in 1996.

That places Belgium 14th out of 112 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.

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

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 6.84 million departures 5.64 million departures 7.78 million departures 4
2000s 8.05 million departures 6.57 million departures 9.33 million departures 10
2010s 12.17 million departures 8.80 million departures 17.32 million departures 10
2020s 13.38 million departures 7.11 million departures 17.91 million departures 5

Countries ranked near Belgium

  1. 11 China 20.33 million departures compare
  2. 12 Mexico 18.82 million departures compare
  3. 13 Sweden 18.34 million departures compare
  4. 15 Taiwan 16.85 million departures compare
  5. 16 Austria 16.42 million departures compare
  6. 17 Ukraine 15.12 million departures compare

See the full ranking of 112 places →

More reference data data for Belgium

All data for Belgium →

Frequently asked questions

What is international tourist departures in Belgium?
International tourist departures in Belgium was 17.91 million departures in 2024, according to UN Tourism (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest international tourist departures recorded in Belgium?
The highest recorded value was 17.91 million departures in 2024.
What is the lowest international tourist departures recorded in Belgium?
The lowest recorded value was 5.64 million departures in 1996.
How does Belgium rank for international tourist departures?
Belgium ranks 14th out of 112 countries with data for 2024.
Is international tourist departures rising or falling in Belgium?
Over the last ten years it is up 63.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Belgium data come from?
The figures come from UN Tourism (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of International tourist departures. 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).

About this data

Indicator
International tourist departures
Unit
departures
Source
UN Tourism (2025) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
112 places, 2,384 data points, 1995–2024
Last refreshed

Number of trips by country's residents who travel abroad and stay overnight.