Arrivals of tourists from abroad in Laos

Laos: Arrivals of tourists from abroad was 811,600 arrivals in 2020. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2020)
811,600 arrivals
Change on year
down 81.5%
World rank
106th
of 203 countries
All-time high
4.38 million arrivals
in 2019
All-time low
60,000 arrivals
in 1995
Years of data
26
1995–2020

Arrivals of tourists from abroad in Laos, 1995–2020

01.0M2.0M3.0M4.0M1995200720201995: 60.0k arrivals1996: 93.0k arrivals1997: 193.0k arrivals1998: 200.0k arrivals1999: 259.0k arrivals2000: 191.0k arrivals2001: 173.0k arrivals2002: 215.0k arrivals2003: 196.0k arrivals2004: 407.0k arrivals2005: 672.0k arrivals2006: 842.0k arrivals2007: 1.1M arrivals2008: 1.3M arrivals2009: 1.2M arrivals2010: 1.7M arrivals2011: 1.9M arrivals2012: 2.3M arrivals2013: 2.7M arrivals2014: 3.2M arrivals2015: 3.5M arrivals2016: 3.3M arrivals2017: 3.3M arrivals2018: 3.8M arrivals2019: 4.4M arrivals2020: 811.6k arrivals

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

Analysis

Laos recorded 811,600 arrivals for arrivals of tourists from abroad in 2020.

That represents a change of down 81.5% on the previous year and down 51.4% over ten years.

Over the whole period, arrivals of tourists from abroad in Laos peaked at 4.38 million arrivals in 2019 and was at its lowest, 60,000 arrivals, in 1995.

Laos ranks 106th of 203 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 161,000 arrivals 60,000 arrivals 259,000 arrivals 5
2000s 637,200 arrivals 173,000 arrivals 1.29 million arrivals 10
2010s 3.00 million arrivals 1.67 million arrivals 4.38 million arrivals 10
2020s 811,600 arrivals 811,600 arrivals 811,600 arrivals 1

Countries ranked near Laos

  1. 103 North Macedonia 830,179 arrivals compare
  2. 104 Nicaragua 817,900 arrivals compare
  3. 105 Cameroon 812,000 arrivals compare
  4. 107 Myanmar 808,000 arrivals compare
  5. 108 Cape Verde 785,000 arrivals compare
  6. 109 Guam 739,146 arrivals compare

See the full ranking of 203 places →

More reference data data for Laos

All data for Laos →

Frequently asked questions

What is arrivals of tourists from abroad in Laos?
Arrivals of tourists from abroad in Laos was 811,600 arrivals in 2020, according to UN Tourism (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest arrivals of tourists from abroad recorded in Laos?
The highest recorded value was 4.38 million arrivals in 2019.
What is the lowest arrivals of tourists from abroad recorded in Laos?
The lowest recorded value was 60,000 arrivals in 1995.
How does Laos rank for arrivals of tourists from abroad?
Laos ranks 106th out of 203 countries with data for 2020.
Is arrivals of tourists from abroad rising or falling in Laos?
Over the last ten years it is down 51.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Laos 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 — 26 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.