Arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes in China

China: Arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes was 42.83 million trips in 2019. ▲ Rising

Latest (2019)
42.83 million trips
Change on year
up 2.5%
World rank
7th
of 179 countries
All-time high
42.83 million trips
in 2019
All-time low
8.50 million trips
in 2003
Years of data
18
2002–2019

Arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes in China, 2002–2019

10.0M20.0M30.0M40.0M2002201020192002: 10.2M trips2003: 8.5M trips2004: 13.1M trips2005: 15.7M trips2006: 16.7M trips2007: 19.1M trips2008: 18.6M trips2009: 16.7M trips2010: 19.9M trips2011: 20.8M trips2012: 20.9M trips2013: 20.1M trips2014: 21.0M trips2015: 20.6M trips2016: 25.7M trips2017: 37.2M trips2018: 41.8M trips2019: 42.8M trips

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

Analysis

The most recent figure for arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes in China is 42.83 million trips, measured in 2019. That is the highest value across all 18 years on record.

That represents a change of up 2.5% on the previous year and up 156.4% over ten years.

Over the whole period, arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes in China peaked at 42.83 million trips in 2019 and was at its lowest, 8.50 million trips, in 2003.

That places China 7th out of 179 countries with data for 2019, putting it in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 18 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 14.83 million trips 8.50 million trips 19.15 million trips 8
2010s 27.09 million trips 19.93 million trips 42.83 million trips 10

Countries ranked near China

  1. 4 Italy 46.48 million trips compare
  2. 5 Mexico 46.05 million trips compare
  3. 6 Hungary 44.31 million trips compare
  4. 8 United Kingdom 31.30 million trips compare
  5. 9 Denmark 30.29 million trips compare
  6. 10 Saudi Arabia 27.75 million trips compare

See the full ranking of 179 places →

More reference data data for China

All data for China →

Frequently asked questions

What is arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes in China?
Arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes in China was 42.83 million trips in 2019, according to UN Tourism (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes recorded in China?
The highest recorded value was 42.83 million trips in 2019.
What is the lowest arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes recorded in China?
The lowest recorded value was 8.50 million trips in 2003.
How does China rank for arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes?
China ranks 7th out of 179 countries with data for 2019.
Is arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes rising or falling in China?
Over the last ten years it is up 156.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this China 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 for personal purposes. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 18 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes
Unit
trips
Source
UN Tourism (2025) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
179 places, 4,054 data points, 1995–2024
Last refreshed

Number of international trips where the main purpose is personal (leisure, visiting friends and relatives, health, etc.) and the visitor stays overnight.