Spain could surpass France as the world's most visited country by 2040, according to a joint study by Deloitte and Google. The research projects Spain to receive an estimated 110 million inbound arrivals in 2040, potentially taking the top position for annual visitors.
France, which recorded 102 million annual international visitors in 2025, is projected to welcome 105 million visitors in 2040. Spain hosted 96.8 million international tourists last year, according to Spain’s National Institute of Statistics.
The analysis also anticipates 2.4 billion global trips by 2040, a significant increase from the 1.5 billion recorded in 2019. The companies behind the study state that the research aims to help travel operators and distributors prepare for future trends.
Separately, new data from July indicated that the Czech Republic is experiencing the fastest growth in travel bookings in Europe. The central European country saw an 18 per cent year-on-year growth in air travel bookings between May 2025 and April 2026, with Iceland and Denmark following with 11 per cent and eight per cent growth rates, respectively.