International tourism experienced its most active year on record in 2025. According to the latest UN Tourism report, the world surpassed 1.52 billion international trips, marking a historic record that confirms the sector's full recovery after the pandemic and a return to pre-2020 growth rates.
Tourist arrivals grew by nearly 4% globally, a figure that is once again approaching the annual average of 5% observed between 2009 and 2019. Beyond the number, the key fact is that tourism has once again consolidated itself as one of the most dynamic economic activities on the planet.
UN Tourism attributes this performance to several factors: sustained travel demand, strong performance in key source markets, the gradual recovery of Asia and the Pacific, increased air connectivity, and visa flexibility. All of this occurred within a complex context marked by inflation in tourism services and geopolitical tensions, without significantly impacting travel intentions.
Dominican Republic: sustained growth in a record year
Against this backdrop of global record-breaking growth, the Dominican Republic also closed 2025 with positive results. The country registered a 3% increase in international tourist arrivals and a 1.6% increase in tourism revenue, confirming that it continues to receive more visitors than in 2024 and that the sector remains one of the main sources of foreign exchange for the economy.
The Ministry of Tourism (Mitur) reported that national hotel occupancy closed the year above 71%, an indicator of high utilization of tourism facilities and operational stability in the sector. Areas such as La Romana, Bayahíbe, Bávaro, Punta Cana, and Puerto Plata were among the best-performing destinations, according to data from the Tourism Intelligence System (Situr).
Tourism Minister David Collado summarized the sector's current state, stating that "the Dominican Republic closed out its best tourism year ever, with over 11 million visitors arriving by air and sea." This figure, combined with high hotel occupancy rates, demonstrates that the record-breaking global travel activity translated into significant economic activity within the country.
For the real estate market, this context is structural: more tourists and a hotel sector operating at high levels sustain the demand for short-term rentals, strengthen the viability of residential tourism projects, and support the appreciation of real estate assets in the main tourist areas.
Africa and Asia lead growth, Europe maintains its lead in volume
At the regional level, Africa was the most dynamic region in 2025, with an 8% growth and a total of 81 million tourists, driven especially by the north of the continent, where arrivals rose 11%.
Asia and the Pacific continued their recovery with a 6% increase, reaching 331 million tourists, although they are still 9% below 2019 levels. Northeast Asia led the region with 13% growth, while South Asia has now fully recovered to its pre-pandemic levels.
Europe, the world's largest tourist destination, welcomed 793 million tourists in 2025. This represented a 4% increase compared to 2024 and was 6% higher than in 2019, consolidating its leadership in global volume. Western Europe grew by 5%, Southern Mediterranean Europe by 3%, and Central and Eastern Europe rebounded by 6%, although it is still 9% below pre-pandemic levels.
In the Americas, growth was more moderate, at 1%, for a total of 218 million arrivals. South America stood out with a 7% increase, followed by Central America with 5%. The Caribbean remained stable (0%), affected in part by the impact of Hurricane Melissa in the last quarter of the year.
The Middle East grew by 3% in 2025 and remains the best performing region compared to 2019, standing 39% above pre-pandemic levels, with nearly 100 million international visitors.
2026: More moderate, but sustained growth
Looking ahead to 2026, UN Tourism projects that international arrivals will grow between 3% and 4%, which points to a normalization of the pace of expansion after the strong rebounds of 2023 (+34%) and 2024 (+11%), and the more moderate growth of 2025 (+4%).
58% of the experts consulted expect 2026 to be better or much better, 31% anticipate similar results, and only 11% foresee a deterioration.
Among the main risks identified are persistent inflation in tourism services, high travel costs, geopolitical tensions, armed conflicts, and extreme weather events. Even so, the report's central message is clear: travel demand remains strong, and tourism has once again taken a top spot on the global economic agenda.
