Arrivals of tourists from abroad in Nigeria
Nigeria: Arrivals of tourists from abroad was 538,927 arrivals in 2024. ▲ Rising
Arrivals of tourists from abroad in Nigeria, 1995–2024
Source: UN Tourism (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in arrivals.
Analysis
Nigeria recorded 538,927 arrivals for arrivals of tourists from abroad in 2024.
That represents a change of up 2.0% on the previous year and down 10.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, arrivals of tourists from abroad in Nigeria peaked at 2.00 million arrivals in 2019 and was at its lowest, 486,000 arrivals, in 2012.
Nigeria ranks 121st of 203 countries on this measure, 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 Nigeria, year by year
| Year | arrivals | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 656,000 arrivals | — |
| 1996 | 822,000 arrivals | +25.3% |
| 1997 | 611,000 arrivals | -25.7% |
| 1998 | 739,000 arrivals | +20.9% |
| 1999 | 776,000 arrivals | +5.0% |
| 2000 | 813,000 arrivals | +4.8% |
| 2001 | 850,000 arrivals | +4.6% |
| 2002 | 887,000 arrivals | +4.4% |
| 2003 | 924,000 arrivals | +4.2% |
| 2004 | 962,000 arrivals | +4.1% |
| 2005 | 1.01 million arrivals | +5.0% |
| 2006 | 1.11 million arrivals | +10.0% |
| 2007 | 1.21 million arrivals | +9.1% |
| 2008 | 1.31 million arrivals | +8.3% |
| 2009 | 1.41 million arrivals | +7.7% |
| 2010 | 1.55 million arrivals | +10.0% |
| 2011 | 715,000 arrivals | -54.0% |
| 2012 | 486,000 arrivals | -32.0% |
| 2013 | 600,000 arrivals | +23.5% |
| 2015 | 1.25 million arrivals | +109.2% |
| 2016 | 1.89 million arrivals | +50.5% |
| 2017 | 1.93 million arrivals | +2.0% |
| 2018 | 1.97 million arrivals | +2.0% |
| 2019 | 2.00 million arrivals | +2.0% |
| 2020 | 502,000 arrivals | -75.0% |
| 2021 | 518,000 arrivals | +3.2% |
| 2022 | 528,360 arrivals | +2.0% |
| 2023 | 528,360 arrivals | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 538,927 arrivals | +2.0% |
Nigeria compared with similar countries
- Nigeria's 538,927 arrivals is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 546,464 arrivals, 99% of the median. (44 countries reporting)
- Nigeria's 538,927 arrivals is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 393,000 arrivals, 1.4× the median. (41 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Arrivals of tourists from abroad in Nigeria 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | +109.2% | 600,000 arrivals | 1.25 million arrivals |
| 2020 | -75.0% | 2.00 million arrivals | 502,000 arrivals |
| 2011 | -54.0% | 1.55 million arrivals | 715,000 arrivals |
| 2016 | +50.5% | 1.25 million arrivals | 1.89 million arrivals |
| 2012 | -32.0% | 715,000 arrivals | 486,000 arrivals |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 720,800 arrivals | 611,000 arrivals | 822,000 arrivals | 5 |
| 2000s | 1.05 million arrivals | 813,000 arrivals | 1.41 million arrivals | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.38 million arrivals | 486,000 arrivals | 2.00 million arrivals | 9 |
| 2020s | 523,129 arrivals | 502,000 arrivals | 538,927 arrivals | 5 |
Countries ranked near Nigeria
More reference data data for Nigeria
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.77 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 19.51 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 27 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 2.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 27 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 5.94 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 5.8 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 81.9 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 121.16 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 14.27 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is arrivals of tourists from abroad in Nigeria?
- Arrivals of tourists from abroad in Nigeria was 538,927 arrivals in 2024, according to UN Tourism (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest arrivals of tourists from abroad recorded in Nigeria?
- The highest recorded value was 2.00 million arrivals in 2019.
- What is the lowest arrivals of tourists from abroad recorded in Nigeria?
- The lowest recorded value was 486,000 arrivals in 2012.
- How does Nigeria rank for arrivals of tourists from abroad?
- Nigeria ranks 121st out of 203 countries with data for 2024.
- Is arrivals of tourists from abroad rising or falling in Nigeria?
- Over the last ten years it is down 10.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Nigeria 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.