Most Visited Countries in the World

These are the top ten most visited countries by international tourists in 2009. On a worldwide basis tourism overall shrank by 4% in 2009 as the great recession took its toll on the travel industry as well as every other industry. How many of these countries can you name off the top of your head? Some are real easy while others might be a surprise but if you think of the great tourist destinations in the world you'll get most of the countries.

1) France - 74.2 million international tourists

France tops the list having welcomed some 74.2 million international tourists in 2009. That is a massive amount of visitors but of course France has a ton of great tourist attractions which draws in all those visitors. The top tourist destination in France is the city of Paris which saw almost 15 million international tourists in 2009. Paris is loaded with great restaurants, hotels and hostels to accommodate all the tourists who come to see such great attractions as Disneyland Paris and Walt Disney Studios Park, the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre Museum, the Musee d'Orsay, the Arc de Triomphe, the Pompidou Centre and Sainte-Chapelle.

Other highly popular tourist attractions in France include the Palace of Versailles, Mont-Saint-Michel, Chateau de Chambord, Chateau du Haut-Koenigsbourg, Puy de Dome, the fortified city of Carcassonne, the French Riviera full of beaches and seaside resorts, the Alps and Pyrenees mountain ranges full of ski resorts and hotels, the Tour de France and the religious pilgrimage site at Lourdes.

2) United States - 54.9 million

The United States ranks second to France attracting almost 60 million international tourists in 2009. Major international tourist attractions in the United States include New York City and especially Times Square, Las Vegas especially the Strip, Washington DC especially the National Mall including the Smithsonian, San Francisco especially the Golden Gate Bridge and Fisherman's Wharf areas, Niagara Falls, Disneyland, the great National Parks especially the Grand Canyon and Yellowstone and of course Hawaii.

3) Spain - 52.2 million

Spain ranks 3rd just behind the United States at 52.2 million international tourists per year. Spain is popular with tourists because of its mild yearly climate and numerous sandy beaches and resorts along the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea which attracts tourists in Spain. Cities such as Madrid, Barcelona, Seville, Cordoba, Grenada and Toledo are also popular tourist destinations in Spain. Many tourists also come to Spain to visit religious sites like the city of Santiago de Compostela. Spain is the 2nd most mountainous country in Europe and visitors come here to ski and stay at the mountain resorts in the Alps and Pyrenees.

4) China - 50.9 million

China is the most populated country in the world and 4th most visited with 50.9 million international tourists in 2009. Tourism to China has boomed in recent times as the government has eased travel restrictions for foreigners. Luxury hotels have been cropping up to handle the influx of tourists who come to see magnificent tourist attractions like the Great Wall of China, the Forbidden City in Beijing, the Terracotta Army in Xi'an, the Three Gorges along the Yangtze River, the numerous mountains and mountain ranges, temples, grottoes and great cities like Hong Kong.

5) Italy - 43.2 million

Italy ranks 5th with 43.2 million international tourists in 2009. Italy is another European country with amazing tourist attractions such as Vatican City which is its own country inside Rome, the Colosseum, the Pantheon, the Leaning Tower of Pisa, Milan Cathedral as well such great tourist cities as Rome, Milan, Venice, Naples, Bologna and Florence. There are some 35,000 hotels in Italy to accommodate all the tourists.

6) Great Britain - 28 million

Great Britain or the United Kingdom ranks 6th with 28 million international tourists in 2009. England is loaded with great tourist attractions like the Tower of London, Buckingham Palace, Stonehenge, St. Paul's Cathedral, Westminster Abbey, Roman Baths, Leeds Castle and London itself. Scotland has Edinburgh Castle, St. Andrews, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen and a magnificent coastline. All of the UK is loaded with great castles and terrific coastlines with plenty of hotels and inns to accommodate the tourist trade.

7) Turkey - 25.5 million

Ranking 7th is Turkey with 25.5 million international tourists in 2009. People visit Turkey to see famous historical sites like the Hagia Sophia and the Sultan Ahmed Mosque also known as the Blue Mosque as well as Istanbul itself and also to vacation at the fabulous seaside resorts located along the Aegean and Mediterranean coasts. Tourism in Turkey has more than tripled in the last 10 years.

8) Germany - 24.2 million

Germany ranks 8th with 24.2 million international tourists in 2009. People travel to Germany for the beer festivals called Oktoberfest and to see such great tourist attractions as the Black Forest, the Rhine Valley, Cologne Cathedral, Neushwanstein and Heidelberg Castles and to see the amazing beauty of the Bavarian Alps.

9) Malaysia - 23.6 million

Malaysia on the content of Asia ranks 9th with 23.6 million international tourists in 2009. Tourism makes up about 7% of the economy in Malaysia and the tourists come to see the capital city of Kuala Lumpur as well as to vacation at some of the most beautiful beaches and islands in the world which are located along Malaysia's coastline.

10) Mexico - 21.5 million

Mexico rounds out the top 10 having received 21.5 million international tourists in 2009. No doubt Mexico's tourist trade benefits greatly by having the wealthiest country in the world as its neighbor to the north. People travel to Mexico to see the great temples and pyramids and ruins of the Aztecs and Mayans as well as the fantastic seaside resorts of Cancun, Cabo San Lucas and Acapulco.

How many of the countries did you know? Anything less than 5 and you are not much of a traveler and anything over 7 means you know your travel countries. Six out of the 10 countries are in Europe while two each are in Asia and North America if we count Turkey as being in Europe.

Sources:http://www.unwto.org/index.php

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Tourism_rankings