Middle East Tourism in 2024: Who Saw The Most Growth?

Despite ongoing regional tensions in the region, the majority of Middle East and North African countries continued to post gains last year. Among the most visited countries, only Jordan saw a decrease in 2024.

In the Gulf, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Dubai continued their tourism pushes, while in North Africa, Morocco overtook Egypt as the most-visited country in the region.

Here's a look at the 2024 international tourism numbers across some of the Middle East's most visited countries.

Qatar saw five million international tourists in 2024, a 25% year-on-year improvement, according to the latest data from Qatar Tourism.

Nationals from countries in the GCC – Gulf Cooperation Council – made up 41% of visitors, with the remaining 59% from international markets. Key source markets included Saudi Arabia, India, United Kingdom, Germany, and the U.S.

Saad Bin Ali Al Kharji, chairman of Qatar Tourism said in a statement posted by the government: “Our tourism goals are ambitious but achievable. Between 2022 and 2030, we aim to nearly triple our visitor numbers and to at least double the tourism in-destination spend. We also aim to increase total tourism contribution to GDP to 10-12%.”

Morocco’s tourism industry saw a record 17.4 million arrivals in 2024, surpassing its 2026 target two years ahead of schedule, according to the Ministry of Tourism. The figure marks a 20% increase from 2023, with nearly three million additional visitors.

Foreign tourists accounted for 8.8 million arrivals, up 23% year-over-year, while visits from Morocca