The most popular travel destinations since 2017: the long-term ranking

Which countries topped the list in which year? We analyzed the percentage of travelers from each country for every travel year since 2017. The ranking tells a clear story: from the era of major Oceania trips, through the upheaval caused by the pandemic, to the current dominance of classic European destinations.

The ranking year by year

Germany leads the rankings every year — and many travelers share their experiences on a German-language platform, reporting on tours within their own country, from the Baltic Sea to the Alps. The real story, however, lies behind this: Until 2019, Australia, New Zealand, and Thailand firmly held the second, third, and fourth spots. From 2021 onward, Italy, France, and Spain took over — and have held the top spot ever since.

2019: The world of long-term travelers

2019 reflects the classic world travel route: Australia, New Zealand, Thailand, and Indonesia represent work and travel destinations, while Southeast Asia is popular for backpacking. With Canada and the USA, six of the eight top destinations are long-haul destinations.

2025: The return of the European classics

Six years later, the picture has reversed: France, Italy, Spain, and Switzerland occupy four of the top six spots. Australia has slipped from second to seventh place, and New Zealand has fallen out of the top eight entirely. Long-haul travel is back—but it no longer dominates.

Data basis: all publicly available travel reports on Vakantio with assigned country, grouped by travel year (as of August 2026). The percentage of active travelers in the respective year who published at least one report from that country is counted. All figures are percentages, not absolute numbers.