The World Travel & Tourism Council has collaborated with Omran Group to launch the inaugural Power, Efficiency & Opportunity Indices, a new framework for measuring the success of the travel and tourism sector.
Developed by WTTC and Oxford Economics, the research looks beyond visitor numbers alone, considering the industry’s economic power, its environmental impact and the opportunities it creates for people. Together, these three factors provide a more comprehensive look at how destinations are growing, and where they may be falling short. The U.S., China and India ranked as the top performers on the list.
Our Analysis: This Research Approach Reveals the Benefits of Considering Tourism’s Wider Impacts
It is no longer enough to measure the tourism industry’s success solely by how many visitors a country attracts or how much those travelers spend. As destinations increasingly contend with overcrowding and struggle to balance the benefits of tourism with the negative impacts it can have on local people and places, a more holistic look at tourism’s footprint can help countries better manage these factors, as well as provide evidence of the benefits of doing so. Case in point: the research showed marked global improvement in environmental efficiency between 2019 and 2024 even as tourism increased, proving that sustainability and economic growth can go hand in hand.
Fast Facts: The Top 10 Tourism Powers
- The list of most powerful travel economies reveals that tourism power remains largely concentrated among advanced economies, primarily high- and upper-middle-income countries in Europe, the Americas and Asia-Pacific. Collectively, the top 20 scorers accounted for 81% of global travel and tourism GDP in 2024.
- The research assessed 184 economies, ultimately ranking the top 10 performers, in order, as the U.S., China, India, Germany, France, the U.K., Japan, Mexico, Spain and Saudi Arabia. Spots 11-20 include Brazil, Italy, Indonesia, Turkiye, Australia, the Philippines, Vietnam, Canada, the Netherlands and Thailand.
- According to the WTTC, tourism remains one of the most consistent sources of employment for youth and women globally, with strong performance across economies at all different stages of development.
- The new indices are meant to provide governments, investors and industry leaders with new benchmarks for destinations, helping them identify strengths and gaps, inform investment decisions and support more balanced tourism growth.
What They Are Saying: We Must Focus on Quality, Not Just Quantity, as Tourism Grows
“Travel and tourism is one of the world’s most powerful sectors, and these new indices give us a broader and more holistic way to understand its impact,” said Gloria Guevara, president and CEO of the WTTC. “As the sector grows, we must focus on quality, as well as quantity of growth. By assessing economic contribution, environmental efficiency and employment opportunities together, the indices provide valuable insights to support sustainable growth and informed decision-making, while highlighting the sector’s ability to create opportunities for women and young people around the world.”
