Arrivals of tourists from abroad in Kenya

Kenya: Arrivals of tourists from abroad was 1.36 million arrivals in 2017. ▲ Rising

Latest (2017)
1.36 million arrivals
Change on year
up 7.6%
World rank
92nd
of 203 countries
All-time high
1.75 million arrivals
in 2011
All-time low
792,000 arrivals
in 1998
Years of data
23
1995–2017

Arrivals of tourists from abroad in Kenya, 1995–2017

0500.0k1.0M1.5M2.0M1995200620171995: 918.0k arrivals1996: 947.0k arrivals1997: 928.0k arrivals1998: 792.0k arrivals1999: 862.0k arrivals2000: 899.0k arrivals2001: 841.0k arrivals2002: 838.0k arrivals2003: 927.0k arrivals2004: 1.2M arrivals2005: 1.4M arrivals2006: 1.5M arrivals2007: 1.7M arrivals2008: 1.1M arrivals2009: 1.4M arrivals2010: 1.5M arrivals2011: 1.8M arrivals2012: 1.6M arrivals2013: 1.4M arrivals2014: 1.3M arrivals2015: 1.1M arrivals2016: 1.3M arrivals2017: 1.4M arrivals

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

Analysis

Kenya recorded 1.36 million arrivals for arrivals of tourists from abroad in 2017.

That represents a change of up 7.6% on the previous year and down 19.1% over ten years.

Over the whole period, arrivals of tourists from abroad in Kenya peaked at 1.75 million arrivals in 2011 and was at its lowest, 792,000 arrivals, in 1998.

That places Kenya 92nd out of 203 countries with data for 2017, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 23 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 889,400 arrivals 792,000 arrivals 947,000 arrivals 5
2000s 1.18 million arrivals 838,000 arrivals 1.69 million arrivals 10
2010s 1.41 million arrivals 1.11 million arrivals 1.75 million arrivals 8

Countries ranked near Kenya

  1. 89 Bosnia and Herzegovina 1.39 million arrivals compare
  2. 90 Mauritius 1.38 million arrivals compare
  3. 91 Senegal 1.36 million arrivals compare
  4. 93 Aruba 1.10 million arrivals compare
  5. 94 Paraguay 1.06 million arrivals compare

See the full ranking of 203 places →

More reference data data for Kenya

All data for Kenya →

Frequently asked questions

What is arrivals of tourists from abroad in Kenya?
Arrivals of tourists from abroad in Kenya was 1.36 million arrivals in 2017, according to UN Tourism (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest arrivals of tourists from abroad recorded in Kenya?
The highest recorded value was 1.75 million arrivals in 2011.
What is the lowest arrivals of tourists from abroad recorded in Kenya?
The lowest recorded value was 792,000 arrivals in 1998.
How does Kenya rank for arrivals of tourists from abroad?
Kenya ranks 92nd out of 203 countries with data for 2017.
Is arrivals of tourists from abroad rising or falling in Kenya?
Over the last ten years it is down 19.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Kenya data come from?
The figures come from UN Tourism (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Arrivals of tourists from abroad. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 23 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Arrivals of tourists from abroad
Unit
arrivals
Source
UN Tourism (2025) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
203 places, 5,187 data points, 1995–2024
Last refreshed

Number of trips by visitors who arrive from abroad and stay overnight.