The table illustrates the number of global tourists in five different regions of the world between 1990 and 2005, measured in millions.
Overall, international travel increased substantially over the period. Europe remained by far the most popular destination throughout the years shown, while the Middle East attracted the fewest travellers. In addition, Asia and the Pacific experienced the most significant growth among all regions.
In 1990, the total number of international trevellers stood at 448.9 million. This figure rose sharply to 615.2 million in 1995 and continued to increase, reaching 693.7 million in 2005. Europe accounted for the largest share of travellers, with 280.2 million visitors in 1990. The number than climbed markedly to 390.3 million in 1995 before reaching 400.2 million in 2005.
Asia and the Pacific also witnessed considerable growth. Visitors number rose from 60.2 million in 1990 to 80.3 million in 1995, before rising dramatically to 135.8 million by 2005, more than doubling over the period. Similarly, Africa experienced steady growth, from 18.2 million to 28.7 million travellers. The Middle East recorded the lowest figure, although the number of visitors increased gradually from 9.8 million to 15.8 million.
By contrust, America showed a less consistent trend. While trevellers numbers grew from 80.5 million to 118.2 million in 1990 and 2000 respectively, they fell slightly to 113.2 million in 2005.