Arrivals of tourists from abroad in Namibia
Namibia: Arrivals of tourists from abroad was 864,000 arrivals in 2023. ▲ Rising
Arrivals of tourists from abroad in Namibia, 1995–2023
Source: UN Tourism (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in arrivals.
Analysis
In 2023, arrivals of tourists from abroad in Namibia stood at 864,000 arrivals.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 87.4% on the previous year and down 26.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, arrivals of tourists from abroad in Namibia peaked at 1.60 million arrivals in 2019 and was at its lowest, 169,600 arrivals, in 2020.
That places Namibia 100th out of 203 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 29 years of available data.
Arrivals of tourists from abroad in Namibia, year by year
| Year | arrivals | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 272,000 arrivals | — |
| 1996 | 461,000 arrivals | +69.5% |
| 1997 | 502,000 arrivals | +8.9% |
| 1998 | 614,000 arrivals | +22.3% |
| 1999 | 635,000 arrivals | +3.4% |
| 2000 | 656,000 arrivals | +3.3% |
| 2001 | 670,000 arrivals | +2.1% |
| 2002 | 757,000 arrivals | +13.0% |
| 2003 | 695,000 arrivals | -8.2% |
| 2004 | 716,000 arrivals | +3.0% |
| 2005 | 778,000 arrivals | +8.7% |
| 2006 | 833,000 arrivals | +7.1% |
| 2007 | 929,000 arrivals | +11.5% |
| 2008 | 931,000 arrivals | +0.2% |
| 2009 | 980,000 arrivals | +5.3% |
| 2010 | 984,000 arrivals | +0.4% |
| 2011 | 1.03 million arrivals | +4.4% |
| 2012 | 1.08 million arrivals | +5.1% |
| 2013 | 1.18 million arrivals | +9.0% |
| 2014 | 1.32 million arrivals | +12.2% |
| 2015 | 1.39 million arrivals | +5.2% |
| 2016 | 1.47 million arrivals | +5.8% |
| 2017 | 1.50 million arrivals | +2.0% |
| 2018 | 1.56 million arrivals | +3.9% |
| 2019 | 1.60 million arrivals | +2.5% |
| 2020 | 169,600 arrivals | -89.4% |
| 2021 | 232,800 arrivals | +37.3% |
| 2022 | 461,000 arrivals | +98.0% |
| 2023 | 864,000 arrivals | +87.4% |
Namibia compared with similar countries
- Namibia's 864,000 arrivals is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 546,464 arrivals, 1.6× the median. (44 countries reporting)
- Namibia's 864,000 arrivals is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 393,000 arrivals, 2.2× the median. (41 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Arrivals of tourists from abroad in Namibia changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | -89.4% | 1.60 million arrivals | 169,600 arrivals |
| 2022 | +98.0% | 232,800 arrivals | 461,000 arrivals |
| 2023 | +87.4% | 461,000 arrivals | 864,000 arrivals |
| 1996 | +69.5% | 272,000 arrivals | 461,000 arrivals |
| 2021 | +37.3% | 169,600 arrivals | 232,800 arrivals |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 496,800 arrivals | 272,000 arrivals | 635,000 arrivals | 5 |
| 2000s | 794,500 arrivals | 656,000 arrivals | 980,000 arrivals | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.31 million arrivals | 984,000 arrivals | 1.60 million arrivals | 10 |
| 2020s | 431,850 arrivals | 169,600 arrivals | 864,000 arrivals | 4 |
Countries ranked near Namibia
More reference data data for Namibia
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.0579 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.52 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0157 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 1.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.194 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.1306 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 6.29 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 6.82 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0853 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is arrivals of tourists from abroad in Namibia?
- Arrivals of tourists from abroad in Namibia was 864,000 arrivals in 2023, according to UN Tourism (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest arrivals of tourists from abroad recorded in Namibia?
- The highest recorded value was 1.60 million arrivals in 2019.
- What is the lowest arrivals of tourists from abroad recorded in Namibia?
- The lowest recorded value was 169,600 arrivals in 2020.
- How does Namibia rank for arrivals of tourists from abroad?
- Namibia ranks 100th out of 203 countries with data for 2023.
- Is arrivals of tourists from abroad rising or falling in Namibia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 26.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Namibia 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 — 29 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Number of trips by visitors who arrive from abroad and stay overnight.