Travelers from around the world hold a special place in their hearts for Europe – a destination that is characterised by its culture, nature and diversity. Every year, millions of travelers fly to Europe from different countries and continents.
Travelers from the Americas make no exception, considering that 40.2 million people alone travelled from the US to the European continent in 2024. However, their interest in visiting these countries can vary drastically, with destinations such as those in Western and Central Europe standing out.
VisaGuide.World reveals which destinations in the European continent were visited the most by travelers flying from the US for the year 2024:
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom is the most visited country on the European continent. That indicates that the UK is the most sought-after destination for travelers departing from the US. A total of 10.7 million people travelled to British airports in 2024, half of which were foreigners.
So, 50.9 percent (5.4 million) of total departing travelers recorded were US citizens, while the rest – 5.2 million or 49 percent are foreigners.
The trend of US travelers visiting the UK is not new. As the data for 2022 and 2023 reveals, the UK was the number one destination for travelers departing from the US, with 7.8 and 10.3 million visiting during the respective years.
It is worth noting that in 2022, the majority of travelers from the US headed to the UK were foreigners. More specifically, 4.2 million visitors were foreigners, representing 53.50 percent of the total departures, compared to 3.6 million visitors who were US citizens (46.5 percent).
Germany
With 5.5 million departing travelers arriving in Germany, this European country has emerged as the second most visited destination.
Out of the total departures in 2024, 2.6 million (47.59 percent) were foreigners, while 2.8 million (52.41 percent) were US citizens.
The interest of travelers from the US in visiting Germany has only kept increasing. While in 2022, 4.4 million departures to Germany were recorded, this number rose by 17.3 percent in 2023, reaching 5.1 million. In 2024, this figure increased to 5.5 million – six percent more than in 2023 and 24.4 percent more than in 2022.
France
France continues to captivate Americans, who love paying a visit to the world’s most popular destination. In 2024, 4.7 million travelers from the US visited France – 4.7 million or 58.76 percent of which were US citizens. Another 1.9 million (41.24 percent) were foreigners, indicating that this destination is popular among all nationalities, not just Americans.
Although the number of travelers from the US to France keeps increasing, the figures do not fluctuate rapidly but rather keep at a steady pace.
During 2023, 4.4 million travelers arrived from the US to France. That is up by 20.2 percent compared to 3.7 million arrivals recorded in 2022 and 5.7 percent less than 4.7 million travelers departing in 2024.
Netherlands
Travelers with a sense of adventure, be it from the US or not, cannot say no to visiting the Netherlands, which particularly stands out for its friendly locals.
As the data reveals, between 2022 and 2024, the number of US travelers departing to Dutch airports has increased by 20.4 percent. There were 2.5 million travelers from the US headed to the Netherlands in 2022, a figure that rose to 2.9 million in 2023 and peaked at 3.08 million in 2024.
However, the trend reveals that foreigners travelling from the US to the Netherlands have had momentum, decreasing from time to time. The share of these travelers stood at 42.84 percent (1.09 million) in 2022, decreasing to 40.48 percent of the total in 2023 and 40.78 percent in 2024.
Italy
For the first time in the last three years, Italy has become the fifth country to receive most travelers from the US in 2024. This means that travelers departing from the US were drawn more to Italy in 2024 than they were in the previous years.
In 2022 and 2023, Italy was positioned sixth on this list, receiving 1.7 and 2.3 million visitors, respectively. This figure peaked in 2024 when 2.7 million travelers from the US departed to Italy – 748,302 (27.07 percent) being foreigners, while over two million (59.26 percent) were US citizens.
Like the Netherlands, the interest of foreigners in the US in visiting Italy shrunk. In 2022, 27.01 percent of travelers from the US to the European country were foreigners. In the following year, the share dropped to 26.37 percent before increasing to 27.07 percent in 2024.
However, in terms of numbers, both foreigners and US citizens continue to travel towards the Italian airports more each year.
Spain
Spain has become the sixth destination for US travelers visiting the European continent, being surpassed by Italy in 2024. But this does not mean that Spain is becoming less attractive to the visitors.
On the contrary, travelers from the US are increasingly visiting Spanish destinations, with the numbers increasing by 37.4 percent between 2022 and 2024. While in 2022, a total of 1.9 million travelers from the US were headed to Spain, this number rose to 2.3 million in 2023 and reached 2.7 million in 2024.
However, the interest in visiting Spain could be dropping among foreigners. As the data reveals, 42.84 percent of travelers from the US departing to Spain were foreigners. This share dropped to 37.46 percent in 2023 and kept plummeting also throughout 2024. As of last year, 35.94 percent of travelers departing from the US to Spain were foreigners.
Ireland
Ireland has also shown a positive upward trend when it comes to receiving travelers from the US, with the numbers being the highest in 2024.
According to the data, the number of travelers departing from the US to visit Ireland increased by 29.1 percent from 2022 to 2024. In 2022, 1.4 million individuals travelled to Ireland, and by 2024, that number had surged to 1.9 million.
Comparing the number of foreigners and the US travelers headed to Ireland, the number of foreign visitors departing from the US has been on the rise, but at a slightly lower rate.
In 2022, US travelers made up 60.80 percent of the total departures to Ireland (around 905,668), increasing to 64.91 percent in 2023 and reaching 64.48 percent in 2024.
As per foreigners travelling from the US to Ireland, they represented 39.20 percent of the total in 2022, which is 583,895 out of 1.4 million. The figure rose to 638,055 in 2023, which is 35.09 percent of the total departures for 2023 and peaked at 683,296 in 2024, accounting for 35.52 percent of the total.
Türkiye
The growing popularity of Türkiye among travelers from the US is undeniable. Between 2022 and 2024, the number of travelers from the US to Türkiye rose by 27.5 percent increase. From 1.4 million travelers coming from the US in 2022, the number grew to 1.9 million in 2024.
Moreover, the number of American visitors is rising, with the proportion of foreigners departing from the US to visit Türkiye on the rise. In 2022, these travelers made up 42.87 percent of the total foreign arrivals, which decreased to 43.02 percent in 2023 before rising again to 45.09 percent in 2024.
Switzerland
With 1.4 million departures from the US, Switzerland is positioned ninth on this list. In total, 665,429 foreigners, representing 46.26 percent of the total departures, were headed to Switzerland in 2024.
This share was 46.57 percent in 2022, to increase to 47.27 percent in the following year before decreasing again in 2024. The total number of US departures in 2022 and 2023 reached 984,535 and 1.3 million, respectively.
Portugal
Portugal continues to attract American travelers for many reasons, and one of them is the exceptional coastline that is unique to this European country.
From 2022 to 2024, the number of US visitors to Portugal increased by 46.1 percent. In 2022, 617,594 Americans visited Portugal, and by 2024, that number surpassed 1.2 million
Foreigners departing from the US to Portugal, on the other hand, have shown less interest in visiting this European country. In 2022, 27.11 percent of US departures were foreigners, with this share decreasing to 23.36 percent in 2023 before witnessing a slight increase in 2024 when 23.67 percent of the total number of travelers departing from the US were foreigners.