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10 Asian Countries with the Most Tourists

Which countries in the continent of Asia receive the most international tourists annually?
For 2023, according to the UN World Tourism Organization
Quiz by Quizzer6794
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Last updated: September 26, 2024
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First submittedJanuary 12, 2017
Times taken92,776
Average score90.0%
Rating4.89
1:30
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# Arrivals
Country
55.2 m
Turkey
32.2 m
India
28.2 m
Thailand
28.1 m
United Arab Emirates
27.4 m
Saudi Arabia
# Arrivals
Country
25.1 m
Japan
24.8 m
China
21.1 m
Singapore
20.1 m
Malaysia
14.0 m
Indonesia
73 Comments
+4
Level ∞
Sep 26, 2024
Chinese numbers are suppressed due to Covid measures that persisted into 2023.

(Probably Vietnam too).

+24
Level 89
Aug 31, 2017
To be fair, all those Saudi arrivals aren't tourists... the kingdom doesn't issue many tourist visas, if any. They're virtually all hadjis.
+103
Level 86
Sep 1, 2017
Religious tourism is still tourism
+28
Level 91
Dec 7, 2017
I was quite surprised Israel wasn't there for the same reason...religious tourism.
+5
Level 22
Feb 23, 2021
Yea, Im from israel and i still dont know why no one visits israel, Welp defenitlly religion tourism. But cmonnn Some people have to come visit we got some ancient and holy sites and no one is visiting them :(
+1
Level 41
May 14, 2025
amongst jews, israel is definitely a popular tourist destination.
+31
Level 42
Sep 11, 2021
Because isreal is not a real country

Palestine is

+7
Level 67
Oct 3, 2024
lol no
+3
Level 55
Nov 14, 2024
*loud incorrect buzzer*

also *Israel

+7
Level 79
Nov 16, 2024
The irony of declaring that a country is not real while misspelling it 'isreal'...
+6
Level 66
Nov 9, 2021
no.
+3
Level 68
Jun 7, 2022
Don't say "no" Some people believe in different things. I personally do NOT recognize Palestine, Israel, or Kosovo.
+3
Level 48
Sep 27, 2024
then whats in that area? Unclaimed Territory? (I recognise both)
+4
Level 37
Jun 27, 2022
Chad
+3
Level 37
Jun 27, 2022
Chad
+26
Level 81
Dec 18, 2017
It's not religious tourism it is the performance of a religious duty. Hajj and Umrah are as much tourism as taking communion is brunch, baptism is going to the pool, or burial is spelunking. It's not the same thing even if it seems similar to you. And the grand total of tourist visas that Saudi Arabia issues every year is 0.
+46
Level 97
Dec 18, 2017
yes but from a logistics and services point of view the needs of someone travelling for tourism are pretty much the same ones that a pilgrim has: transportation, hotels, food&beverages, tourist guides and so on.

economically speaking, we can say thad saudi arabia has a quite flourishing tourism industry.

+3
Level 61
Dec 18, 2017
Agreed,
+8
Level 97
Dec 18, 2017
I agree with iuvas here. The hajjis are issued visas to perform Hajj and Umrah. And the hajjis spend their money in the country as all tourists in other countries do. So they could be regarded as "tourists".
+8
Level 66
Dec 18, 2017
I'm with kalbahamut on this. Here is the definition of tourism that Google provides: "the commercial organization and operation of vacations and visits to places of interest." Merriam-Webster defines it as "the practice of traveling for recreation." Dictionary.com defines it as "the activity or practice of touring, especially for pleasure." NONE of those definitions includes religious pilgrimage.
+1
Level 71
Jun 10, 2025
In fact, they all fit. A place of religious interest is a place of interest. The same Merriam Webster defines recreation as "a refreshment of strength and spirits", and many pilgrims would probably agree that this is exactly what they're doing. And touring a religious site is obviously still touring.

I know religious people want to feel extra special and have everybody else acknowledge how extra special the activities are that are extra special to them, but other people are not obligated to do so.

If you go on a tour somewhere you don't live, and it's not for work, it's tourism.

+16
Level 75
Dec 18, 2017
I dunno, I don't see why adding religion makes it any different. They are still personally interested in going to the place and pay money to do so, whether the reason is religious or recreational I don't see why it matters.
+6
Level 75
Dec 18, 2017
I am a Muslim and I 100% agree with Kal on the Hajj. If it wasn't for the religious obligation and the spiritual rewards no one in their right-minds would paying so much money and effort to go through it, as it is very draining physically. However, I disagree on Umrahs because they are not actually a religious duty. Performing an Umrah falls under the 'favorable' or 'beloved' acts in Sharia. Umrahs are also quite a pleasant experience as they typically take around an hour or so to complete and are not especially draining, but you get similar spiritual satisfaction to the Hajj. They can be done in any time of the year and you also get to visit Mecca, shop in its Souks, and experience something different. I know countless people that are financially able who do an Umrah every year (or more) just to refresh themselves.
+1
Level 75
Dec 18, 2017
It's like if the Pyramid of Giza (an ancient monument that draws in large numbers of people every year, just like the Kaaba) also happened to be the centre of an active religion. So overall I'd say there's a fine line between Tourism and Religious duty here, so we shouldn't totally exclude Saudi Arabia from touristic countries.
+7
Level 73
Sep 18, 2019
@kenpo that is a flawed argument. You could also say NONE of those mentions visiting museum, so the people the travel to visit museum are not tourists. #1 place of interest describes it well, so definitely not an argument against it, #2 indeed does not include it #3 does include it, just points out especially, but not just, for pleasure.

And those are only responses to your selected sources. I could give a few aswell. Wiktionary: "The act of visiting another region or jurisdiction for a particular purpose" Tourism comes from tour which is "A journey (through a particular country)" Tourism is simply travelling to another place, sometimes for a specific goal ( a landmark you would like to see, or a pilgrimage) and sometimes just to enjoy yourself in another country.

If you are not convinced, just google: Is pilgrimage tourism. (in fact personally I think it is at the cradle of tourism, at first the main reason people travelled to other places that had religious significance)

+5
Level 48
Sep 15, 2020
If it's not religious tourism but rather than the performance of a religious duty, where does that leave all the millions of business trips? Does it mean these aren't business tourism but rather the performance of a business duty / employment duty?

Whether the travel is voluntary (for leisure/holiday) or involuntary (for business/religion), it all constitutes as travel and tourism.

+1
Level 79
Nov 16, 2024
Exactly! The handwringing about the definition of tourism is silly. When people travel on a short-term basis, it's tourism. It doesn't matter if they have fun or not. It doesn't matter if they engage in religious practice, or business, or funeral proceedings, or receive medical services while they are there.

If I take my grumpy teenager on an educational trip to a historic place and I find it engaging and enlightening, while they are miserable and are only there because they have to be, do we both count as tourists? Of course we do.

+2
Level 79
Sep 1, 2017
I got seven, was stumped for a while, and then got the last three in succession. Well then.
+3
Level 66
Sep 1, 2017
Ah, Saudi Arabia....wasn't on my mind. I assume Muslims travelling on the Hajj?
+2
Level 33
Sep 1, 2017
Good quiz. Did not get Singapore or Malaysia, didn't realise loads of tourists went there
+1
Level 70
Dec 18, 2017
Lots from Australia.
+1
Level 48
Sep 15, 2020
Unlike the other estranged siblings across Asia (North/South Korea, China/Taiwan, India/Pakistan) there are still extensive economic, familial, cultural and social links between Malaysia and Singapore, with thousands crossing the border for work, holiday and family reasons.
+2
Level 74
Nov 2, 2024
Same as for the UAE, Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand have major hub airports where travellers often stay overnight or longer
+4
Level 68
Oct 27, 2017
I don't understand why I keep forgetting about Korea (both of them). On like every. single. quiz.
+6
Level 53
Dec 18, 2017
Really surprised not to see Turkmenistan or Tajikistan in there.
+1
Level 62
Nov 2, 2024
I am surprised Bhutan or Yemen aren't there either.
+14
Level 67
Dec 18, 2017
Very surprised not to see Indonesia on there. Thought Bali etc. was a massive holiday destination for Australians.
+1
Level 94
Jan 20, 2019
Me too. According to the source Indonesia had 9.9M in 2015 total. According to the one below it aims to have 20M by the year and last year had 1.15M in one month which makes it around 14M per year https://tradingeconomics.com/indonesia/tourist-arrivals

And apparently 400k per month to Bali. That may well be mostly Australians, but does not necessarily mean lots of others go there.

+1
Level 73
Sep 18, 2019
I expected it to be on here aswell, not just from australian tourism, but people from europe too. So why is malaysia on there?? (I know personal experiences does not mean everything, but everything you read see and hear is an indicator) I hear lots of people about indonesia, and virtually noone about malaysia. So if malaysia is on there I definitely would have expected indonesia.
+3
Level 66
Dec 18, 2017
Biggest surprise on the quiz to me is that Japan is so low. What is there to see in Malaysia that more people go there than to Japan?
+1
Level 49
Dec 19, 2017
Beaches
+4
Level ∞
Sep 24, 2019
Japan is climbing rapidly. And it's no wonder. Its a beautiful and fascinating place to visit.
+1
Level 51
May 12, 2025
Most flights to Bali, Jakarta, Sydney, Melbourne, Mumbai etc halt at Kuala Lumpur. Also, it's very close to Singapore.
+4
Level 50
Dec 18, 2017
I think it's people from Singapore crossing the border to Malaysia and vice-versa.
+2
Level 66
Dec 18, 2017
Singapore also has a lot of western and Indian tourists, mostly for work and formula 1
+2
Level 71
Dec 19, 2017
It really suprised me not to see North Korea in this list !
+8
Level 71
Jan 22, 2020
I have a summer home there.
+1
Level 27
Dec 20, 2017
In 2013, Russia was visited by 33 million tourists, why is it not on the quiz
+5
Level 62
Jan 1, 2018
Because it's considered a European country. Yes, the majority of its land is in Asia, but that's mostly Siberia, which is just too darn cold for a whole lot of people to want to live there. The capital, Moscow, along with most of Russia's population, is in Europe.
+1
Level 87
Jan 9, 2025
Interesting distinction - most of the land is in Asia but that's not the part being visited. I wonder how many tourists DO visit the Asian part of Russia annually.
+1
Level 51
May 12, 2025
-1million
+2
Level 68
Apr 9, 2018
I try North Korea for fun.
+5
Level 74
Jul 23, 2018
And was it?
+1
Level 22
Feb 23, 2021
lol same
+1
Level 68
Jan 22, 2020
Well, how the heck did I forget about Thailand.
+1
Level 79
Jan 22, 2020
It took me 10min, but, Saudi Arabia FTW!
+2
Level 22
Jan 22, 2020
Saudi Arabia:

- muslims

- Mekka

- Medina

Now makes sense.

+1
Level 51
May 12, 2025
Also, KSA is now focusing on tourism. As they finally realized that their oil is running out.
+1
Level 49
Jan 22, 2020
LOL got all but thailand
+1
Level 39
Feb 15, 2020
somehow didnt get turkey
+6
Level 51
Jan 3, 2021
Did you get a ham instead?
+1
Level 74
Jun 4, 2021
15 seconds remaining
+1
Level 27
Jun 8, 2021
Nearly forgot Vietnam, thought too much warstruck to attract any visitors. THEIR IN THE TREEEEEES!!
+1
Level 52
Feb 15, 2023
Indonesia via Bali
+2
Level 68
Mar 5, 2023
Does anyone understand the hows/whys?

Saudi Arabia- hadjis/religious travelers

China/Japan/ROK: large, developed, touristy areas, probably ease of travel/proximity to SEA. Maybe emigrant families visiting, especially for holidays.

UAE: emphasizes tourism. Large airport traffic

But what’s with the large difference between Thailand (38m), Malaysia (26m), and Vietnam (15m). And no Philippines or Indonesia?

Maybe a visa thing, or flight cost thing, or language.

Seems like Kuala Lumpur is nicer than Manila. And there are a lot of people talking in reviews about how much there is to do in Bangkok & how compact it is.

+1
Level 71
Jun 22, 2023
Super surprised to not see Indonesia on the list. Guess the Aussies can't do the numbers by themselves.
+1
Level 46
Dec 15, 2023
could you clarify, are these both domestic and international tourists, or just domestic?
+1
Level 63
Sep 27, 2024
Surprised about no South Korea or Vietnam.
+2
Level 67
Oct 2, 2024
Visitors include who transits via airport? Come on! UAE has hotels for rich people but are there millions of rich visitors? Air passengers who stop at Dubai Airport at most.
+2
Level 58
Nov 2, 2024
malaysia being above indonesia is unfathomable. also indonesia had banned tourism until mid 2022
+1
Level 58
Nov 2, 2024
Yes I thought that as well. But then - I have been to Malaysia and not Indonesia. I wonder if a lot of the people who stop off in Singapore on the way to somewhere else pop over the border to Johor, or something like that. Or perhaps people go to southern Thailand and (as I did) go home via Malaysia or Singapore just to make it a more varied holiday. Looking at the map, Phuket doesn't seem to be much closer to Bangkok than to Kuala Lumpur. And of course Indonesia isn't really on the way to anywhere.
+2
Level 55
Nov 3, 2024
Quite surprised South Korea ain't on this list.
+1
Level 47
Feb 24, 2025
Good quiz :)