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January 27, 2015

Top 100 City Destinations Ranking

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Euromonitor International is pleased to release its annual Top City Destinations Ranking, covering 100 of the world’s leading cities in terms of international tourist arrivals. The continuing increase in arrivals to these cities illustrates their economic strength, as well as the sustained importance of urban centres to global tourism, both business and leisure. In fact, these cities combined grew by 5.4% in 2013 –higher than the 4.8% growth experienced by overall international arrivals.

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Asian cities account for a third of the most visited cities

Over a third of all destinations are located in the Asian Pacific region, illustrating strong regional travel trends within Asia, as well as the growing connections throughout the region. Within the top 10, six of the leading cities are from Asia, with the top three remaining unchanged from last year – Hong Kong, Singapore and Bangkok. These three Asian mega-cities serve as some of the top destinations for Chinese travellers as well as being air network hubs. Bangkok showed the strongest growth among the top 10 cities, up 10.4% from 2012 to reach 17.4 million arrivals, despite political unrest breaking out at the end of the year. Chinese visitors are key to Thailand’s booming arrivals, with close links between the countries as well as efficient and short transport connections.

A new Asian arrival on the list is the South Korean city of Jeju with 1.77 million visitors, growing 46.3% in 2013. Chinese visitors replaced Japanese arrivals as the most important source market for South Korea in 2013. About 70% of international visitors to Jeju Island are Chinese, aided by the no-visa policy as well as improved cruise facilities, direct flights from the Chinese mainland, and a plethora of duty-free shopping opportunities.

While outbound Chinese tourism is hugely influential in many of the cities listed, inbound tourism remains sluggish. China does remain the leading country for the number of cities featured in the top 100, with a total of eight cities. However, with the exceptions of Suzhou and Guilin, all these cities experienced a decline in arrivals for 2013. Beijing in particular continues to be affected by the slowdown in the Chinese economy as well as pollution.

India’s leading cities, Delhi and Mumbai, though, experienced growth of 27% and 22%, Tweet-Thisrespectively, in 2013, with both of them receiving around 3.6 million visitors. The depreciation of the rupee against the US dollar made it much cheaper to travel to India in comparison to previous years, aiding inbound tourism.

 

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GCC countries are the shining stars of the Middle East

The GCC counties are well represented by four countries, Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, all having cities in the top 100. The latter is home to Dubai, the region’s starTweet-This city for arrivals with a total of 10.5 million visitors, up 7% on the previous year. The United Arab Emirates government has worked hard in recent years promoting the country as a safe family tourism destination, which has benefitted Dubai, and also neighbouring emirates Abu Dhabi and Sharjah, which also feature in the top 100. These cities have also picked up a lot of arrivals who previously would have opted for destinations such as Egypt before its recent instability.

Saudi Arabia features three cities in the top 100: Mecca, East Province and Riyadh. 2013 was a strong year for inbound tourists visiting Mecca for religious pilgrimage, with arrivals reaching 7.5 million due to massive expansions at the holy mosques as well as a growing number of hotels. This is in spite of concerns about the MERS virus, which was first reported in Saudi Arabia in 2012.

Doha, in Qatar, was the Middle Eastern city showing the best growth in 2013, reaching 3.8 million arrivals, up by 21.2%. Business tourism is the mainstay of arrivals, due to Qatar’s substantial oil and gas industry, but leisure tourism is growing slowly with the country focusing largely on cultural and sporting attractions to entice visitors.

 

Europe courting Russian and Chinese visitors

London and Paris remain Western Europe’s leading cities for arrivals with 16.8 million and 15.2 million, respectively, in 2013. Turkey features strongly in the list, with Antalya, Istanbul and Artvin all showing good growth for the year. Russian arrivals were key to this growth, with Antalya hosting Tweet-This 75% of all visitors from Russia to Turkey. Visas are not required for Russians staying less than 60 days in Turkey, and Antalya provides beach locations such as Kemer, Alanya, Belek, Kas, and Side, which are popular with Russian tourists.

Zurich in Switzerland has one of the highest growth rates for arrivals in Europe, at 23.6%, and it welcomed 2.26 million arrivals in 2013. Increasing numbers of tourists from China and Russia are visiting the city, aided by the fact that Switzerland is within the Schengen visa zone, and offers excellent transportation links and air connections.

 

A reshuffling of future source markets

The long-heralded rise of the Chinese outbound traveller is set to continue with China overtaking Germany as the number one source of outbound international travel in 2017. Nearby Asian cities, especially those located in countries with relaxed or no visa requirements, will benefit immensely. However, Chinese travellers are becoming more adventurous – travelling farther afield and exploring on their own as opposed to in a tour group. It is important for cities to understand the changing Chinese travellers’ desires and build a strong marketing message to court them.

The outlook for Russian travellers was equally bright just a year ago, but the deteriorating economic situation and the rapid decline of the rouble now call into question how strong a source market Russia will be, especially for city destinations in important sun destinations such as Turkey, Egypt and Thailand.

However, city destinations may want to turn their eyes to the US market, which was the second largest source market in 2013. The US has been a relatively mature market, with outbound travel peaking in 2007, followed by yearly declines until a recovery began in 2012. But a better economic environment, a stronger dollar and lower gas prices will likely boost outbound travel from the US. According to the Office of Travel and Tourism Industries, outbound travel from the US was up by Tweet-This9.6% year-to-date in October 2014 – a significant increase for a mature market. The benefit, though, may mostly accrue in cities in neighbouring countries in Central America (including Mexico) and the Caribbean, but Western European cities will likely benefit too thanks to strong cultural positioning and historical ties. 

Uncertainty is the only certainty

The shift towards a more connected world is both a positive and a negative for international travel. The opportunities to attract visitors from new source markets are vast, but can quickly turn into challenges, whether it is due to geopolitical unrest, economic decline or natural disasters. It is important for city destinations to be prepared to quickly respond to the constantly evolving global landscape to have their tourism industries thrive.

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City
Country Ranking Arrivals 2013 ('000) 2013/2012 % Growth
Hong Kong Hong Kong 1 25,587.3 7.6
Singapore Singapore 2 22,455.4 5.4
Bangkok Thailand 3 17,467.8 10.4
London United Kingdom 4 16,784.1 8.6
Paris France 5 15,200.0 4.6
Macau Macau 6 14,268.5 5.1
New York City USA 7 11,850.4 2.0
Shenzhen China 8 11,702.5 -3.0
Kuala Lumpur Malaysia 9 11,182.4 5.0
Antalya Turkey 10 11,120.7 8.0
Istanbul Turkey 11 10,486.3 11.8
Dubai United Arab Emirates 12 10,458.3 6.9
Seoul South Korea 13 8,619.0 3.1
Rome Italy 14 8,608.3 2.2
Phuket Thailand 15 8,035.0 11.3
Guangzhou China 16 7,630.1 -3.0
Mecca Saudi Arabia 17 7,512.1 9.6
Pattaya Thailand 18 6,986.2 6.4
Taipei Taiwan 19 6,692.4 2.0
Miami USA 20 6,275.1 4.1
Prague Czech Republic 21 6,208.5 1.8
Shanghai China 22 6,089.7 -6.5
Las Vegas USA 23 6,046.9 -0.8
Milan Italy 24 5,873.9 1.8
Barcelona Spain 25 5,524.6 1.2
Moscow Russia 26 5,438.9 8.0
Amsterdam Netherlands 27 5,204.1 1.2
Vienna Austria 28 5,187.6 4.5
Venice Italy 29 5,159.6 2.7
Los Angeles USA 30 5,073.7 1.1
Lima Peru 31 4,900.8 27.1
Tokyo Japan 32 4,594.5 22.5
Johannesburg South Africa 33 4,512.2 3.3
Beijing China 34 4,502.5 -10.1
Sofia Bulgaria 35 4,448.5 7.8
Orlando USA 36 4,379.2 3.0
Berlin Germany 37 4,312.5 4.9
Budapest Hungary 38 4,222.0 7.5
Ho Chi Minh City Vietnam 39 4,197.7 7.0
Florence Italy 40 4,186.1 2.0
Madrid Spain 41 4,006.4 -2.6
Warsaw Poland 42 3,987.0 8.9
Doha Qatar 43 3,773.0 21.2
Nairobi Kenya 44 3,755.7 9.3
Delhi India 45 3,672.2 27.3
Mumbai India 46 3,643.9 22.4
Chennai India 47 3,581.2 1.3
Mexico City Mexico 48 3,441.6 10.1
Dublin Ireland 49 3,398.3 9.7
San Francisco USA 50 3,252.7 2.0
Hangzhou China 51 3,158.9 -4.6
Denpasar Indonesia 52 3,125.3 8.9
St. Petersburg Russia 53 3,103.0 7.0
Muğla Turkey 54 3,062.7 2.5
Brussels Belgium 55 2,990.0 3.5
Burgas Bulgaria 56 2,940.3 9.3
Munich Germany 57 2,894.6 5.0
Zhuhai China 58 2,886.5 -3.0
Sydney Australia 59 2,853.0 6.5
Edirne Turkey 60 2,840.5 5.3
Toronto Canada 61 2,785.2 -1.2
Lisbon Portugal 62 2,785.2 5.7
Cancún Mexico 63 2,761.4 5.7
Buenos Aires Argentina 64 2,693.1 -6.6
Cairo Egypt 65 2,625.0 -25.0
Punta Cana Dominican Republic 66 2,591.0 7.5
Suzhou China 67 2,587.4 3.8
Djerba Tunisia 68 2,538.4 3.8
Agra India 69 2,483.2 5.5
Kraków  Poland 70 2,450.0 8.9
Bucharest Romania 71 2,439.7 3.8
Siem Reap Cambodia 72 2,411.1 16.9
Jaipur India 73 2,403.0 2.5
Honolulu USA 74 2,369.7 3.1
Manama Bahrain 75 2,349.0 15.4
East Province Saudi Arabia 76 2,338.4 8.5
Hanoi Vietnam 77 2,309.1 15.0
Andorra la Vella Andorra 78 2,287.5 2.2
Nice France 79 2,272.7 2.3
Zurich Switzerland 80 2,259.1 23.6
Jakarta Indonesia 81 2,194.2 7.7
Manila Philippines 82 2,188.3 10.0
Chiang Mai Thailand 83 2,127.0 6.9
Marrakech Morocco 84 2,119.1 5.2
Sharm el Sheikh Egypt 85 2,046.0 -7.0
Marne-La-Vallée France 86 1,995.7 -3.2
Frankfurt Germany 87 1,963.1 4.7
Abu Dhabi United Arab Emirates 88 1,951.4 19.4
Vancouver Canada 89 1,951.2 2.0
Guilin China 90 1,942.7 6.5
Melbourne Australia 91 1,929.0 8.4
Rio de Janeiro Brazil 92 1,917.9 10.0
Riyadh Saudi Arabia 93 1,899.4 9.2
Amman Jordan 94 1,872.5 -2.3
Sousse Tunisia 95 1,844.2 3.8
Kiev Ukraine 96 1,818.0 -3.0
Sharjah United Arab Emirates 97 1,801.1 6.5
Jeju South Korea 98 1,779.2 46.3
Krabi Thailand 99 1,772.2 16.5
Artvin Turkey 100 1,732.7 26.9

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Annual research programme

Euromonitor International's Top City Destinations Ranking (2014 edition) was built from the results of the global travel research programme conducted in 57 core countries by in-country analysts, which follows Euromonitor International’s methodology and definitions for travel and tourism.

City arrivals data were sourced directly from national statistics offices, airport arrivals, hotel/accommodation stays or other methods for all 57 core countries and 153 market insight countries under review.

Main secondary sources included: governmental, inter-governmental and other official sources; national and international specialist trade press and trade associations; industry study groups and other semi-official sources; and reports published by major operators, travel retailers, online databases and the financial, business and mainstream press. Trade interviews were conducted with national tourist offices, trade associations and travel operators to fill gaps in secondary research.

Country data was then cross-checked on a regional basis by the regional research teams based in London, Vilnius, Chicago and Singapore. Examples of regional sources reviewed included TourMis and European Cities Marketing for Europe. Further top-down checks were conducted by the in-house global research team. Where irregularities were found between editions, supplementary research was conducted to confirm or amend those findings. Euromonitor International is satisfied that the results of the in-country research, coupled with the top-down global perspective, ensure that the Top City Destinations Ranking is robust with a high level of data validation.

It is important to note that the Top City Destinations Ranking is not an exhaustive list and that its purpose is to highlight leading cities gleaned from the findings of Euromonitor International’s annual research programme, with the emphasis on cities, rather than popular holiday resorts.

Data Research Method

City

Airport Arrivals

Agra, Chennai, Delhi, Jaipur, Moscow, Mumbai, Punta Cana, Taipei

Airport Arrivals and Hotel/Accommodation

Buenos Aires, Cairo, Sharm el Sheikh

Hotel/Accommodation

Amsterdam, Berlin, Cancún, Kuala Lumpur Lima, Marrakech, Mexico City, Milan, Paris, Prague, Rome, Vienna, Zurich

National Statistics Office

Abu Dhabi, Andorra la Vella, Bangkok, Barcelona, Beijing, Brussels, Budapest, Chiang Mai, Denpasar, Dubai, Dublin, East Province, Florence, Guangzhou, Guilin, Hangzhou, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh, Hong Kong, Honolulu, Jakarta, Jeju, Krabi, Krakow, Las Vegas, Lisbon, London, Los Angeles, Macau, Madrid, Manila, Mecca, Miami, Munich, New York City, Nice, Orlando, Pattaya, Phuket, Rio De Janeiro, Riyadh, San Francisco, Seoul, Shanghai, Sharjah, Shenzhen, Singapore, Suzhou, Sydney, Tokyo, Toronto, Vancouver, Venice, Zhuhai

Other method

Artvin, Antalya, Bucharest, Burgas, Edirne, Istanbul, Johannesburg, Kiev, Marne-La-Vallée, Nairobi, Sofia, St Petersburg, Warsaw

Revisions to the data for Paris

Under Euromonitor International definitions, we track all international arrivals to a city, including those who stay in non-hotel lodging and in non-paid accommodation. We had previously underestimated how many overnight visitors stayed outside of hotels, so we have adjusted the data accordingly. This has resulted in a data revision for Paris. The city is now ranked fifth, as opposed to 10th in last year’s edition.

Chinese arrival inclusions

Overnight visitors from mainland China are included in the Hong Kong arrivals data. Overnight visitors from mainland China and Hong Kong are included in the Macau arrivals data. Overnight visitors from Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan are included in the Beijing arrivals data.


Footnotes

Country/City                   Notes

All countries/cities              Excludes day trippers and domestic visitors

Singapore                         Includes Malaysian citizens arriving by land

Saudi Arabia                      Official data are for provinces only

 

Definitions

International arrivals by city includes visitors from abroad who arrive at the city under review as their first point of entry, and also includes those visitors to the city who arrived in the country via a different point of entry, but then go on to visit the city in question during their trip.

Arrivals refers to international tourists, ie any person visiting another country for at least 24 hours, for a period not exceeding 12 months, and staying in collective or private accommodation. Each arrival is counted separately and includes people travelling more than once a year and people visiting several countries during one holiday. Domestic visitors are excluded. This encompasses all purposes of visit, such as business, leisure and visiting friends and relatives.

Euromonitor International’s arrivals figures exclude same-day visitors, people in transit and cruise passengers as this can distort arrival figures at important border crossings and cruise destinations, respectively. It also excludes those in paid employment abroad. Students that stay in a country for a period of more than 12 months are excluded and are considered as temporary residents. Military personnel and transportation crew are excluded, along with displaced people because of war or natural disasters.

The ranking focuses on capital city hubs and tends to exclude beach and ski resorts that may enjoy high volumes of international visitors.

Useful reference

http://www.euromonitor.com/Travel_And_Tourism

For further insight, please contact Caroline Bremner, Head of Travel, caroline.bremner@euromonitor.com or Michelle Grant, Travel Manager, michelle.grant@euromonitor.com.

 

Have a question or a thought to add? Leave us a comment below.


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