Skift Take
America’s top 20 inbound tourism markets includes a surprising mix, but as expected, overall rapid growth from Asia and Latin America points to where U.S. tourism efforts should be focused for the at least the next decade.
The number of Europeans visiting the U.S. continued to drop in 2012, while the number of Asian and Latin Americans quickly increased.
Data released by the U.S. Department of Commerce today details America’s top inbound tourism markets from 2012.
Total visitor numbers increased 7 percent to a new record of 67 million international visitors. Arrivals were led by Canada and Mexico, which brought in 22.7 million and 14.5 million travelers a piece.
Of the top 20 inbound markets, all six that dropped in visitation were in Europe: UK (-1.9%), France (-3.2%), Italy (-6.8%), Spain (-13.3%), the Netherlands (-1.5%), and Ireland (-4.3%).
All other markets increased visitation with the greatest growth coming from Asia and Latin America. China posted a remarkable 35.5 percent increase in visitation followed by growth from Colombia (+21.2%), Venezuela (+20.3%), Argentina (+20%), and Brazil (+18.8%).
| Country | Arrivals | Change 2012 vs. 2011 (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Canada | 22,698,986 | 6.4 |
| Mexico | 14,509,341 | 7.5 |
| United Kingdom | 3,763,381 | -1.9 |
| Japan | 3,698,073 | 13.8 |
| Germany | 1,875,952 | 2.9 |
| Brazil | 1,791,103 | 18.8 |
| China (excl Hong Kong) | 1,474,408 | 35.3 |
| France | 1,455,720 | -3.2 |
| South Korea | 1,251,432 | 9.3 |
| Australia | 1,122,180 | 8.1 |
| Italy | 831,343 | -6.8 |
| India | 724,433 | 9.2 |
| Venezuela | 674,754 | 20.3 |
| Argentina | 614,504 | 20 |
| Spain | 607,273 | -13.3 |
| Colombia | 602,338 | 21.2 |
| Netherlands | 591,746 | -1.5 |
| Switzerland | 476,637 | 0 |
| Sweden | 442,013 | 0.7 |
| Ireland | 331,850 | -4.3 |
| Total Top 20 for Year-to-Date | 59,537,467 | 6.6 |
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Photo credit: Tourists stop to take a family photo in the middle of Times Square. Peter Dutton / Flickr