Arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes in El Salvador
El Salvador: Arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes was 2.87 million trips in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes in El Salvador, 1995–2024
Source: UN Tourism (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in trips.
Analysis
El Salvador recorded 2.87 million trips for arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes in 2024. That is the highest value across all 30 years on record.
That represents a change of up 22.8% on the previous year and up 141.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes in El Salvador peaked at 2.87 million trips in 2024 and was at its lowest, 200,000 trips, in 1998.
El Salvador ranks 52nd of 179 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.
Arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes in El Salvador, year by year
| Year | trips | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 230,000 trips | — |
| 1996 | 272,000 trips | +18.3% |
| 1997 | 213,000 trips | -21.7% |
| 1998 | 200,000 trips | -6.1% |
| 1999 | 406,000 trips | +103.0% |
| 2000 | 490,000 trips | +20.7% |
| 2001 | 494,000 trips | +0.8% |
| 2002 | 794,000 trips | +60.7% |
| 2003 | 564,000 trips | -29.0% |
| 2004 | 742,000 trips | +31.6% |
| 2005 | 863,000 trips | +16.3% |
| 2006 | 937,000 trips | +8.6% |
| 2007 | 996,000 trips | +6.3% |
| 2008 | 968,000 trips | -2.8% |
| 2009 | 923,000 trips | -4.6% |
| 2010 | 985,000 trips | +6.7% |
| 2011 | 1.04 million trips | +5.7% |
| 2012 | 1.10 million trips | +5.7% |
| 2013 | 1.14 million trips | +3.3% |
| 2014 | 1.19 million trips | +4.5% |
| 2015 | 1.24 million trips | +4.1% |
| 2016 | 1.23 million trips | -0.4% |
| 2017 | 1.42 million trips | +15.3% |
| 2018 | 1.52 million trips | +7.4% |
| 2019 | 1.65 million trips | +8.5% |
| 2020 | 516,000 trips | -68.8% |
| 2021 | 1.17 million trips | +127.0% |
| 2022 | 1.79 million trips | +52.8% |
| 2023 | 2.33 million trips | +30.4% |
| 2024 | 2.87 million trips | +22.8% |
El Salvador compared with similar countries
- El Salvador's 2.87 million trips is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 1.32 million trips, 2.2× the median. (50 countries reporting)
- El Salvador's 2.87 million trips is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 667,148 trips, 4.3× the median. (38 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes in El Salvador 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | +127.0% | 516,000 trips | 1.17 million trips |
| 1999 | +103.0% | 200,000 trips | 406,000 trips |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 264,200 trips | 200,000 trips | 406,000 trips | 5 |
| 2000s | 777,100 trips | 490,000 trips | 996,000 trips | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.25 million trips | 985,000 trips | 1.65 million trips | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.74 million trips | 516,000 trips | 2.87 million trips | 5 |
Countries ranked near El Salvador
More reference data data for El Salvador
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.2714 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.6267 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1.78 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0909 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 1.78 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.91 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.3176 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 3.5 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 8.5 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.4948 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes in El Salvador?
- Arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes in El Salvador was 2.87 million trips in 2024, 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 El Salvador?
- The highest recorded value was 2.87 million trips in 2024.
- What is the lowest arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes recorded in El Salvador?
- The lowest recorded value was 200,000 trips in 1998.
- How does El Salvador rank for arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes?
- El Salvador ranks 52nd out of 179 countries with data for 2024.
- Is arrivals of tourists from abroad for personal purposes rising or falling in El Salvador?
- Over the last ten years it is up 141.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this El Salvador 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.
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About this data
Number of international trips where the main purpose is personal (leisure, visiting friends and relatives, health, etc.) and the visitor stays overnight.