KUALA LUMPUR: Japan, the United States and Spain lead the World Economic Forum’s Travel & Tourism Development Index 2026.
Malaysia is among the economies making notable gains as destinations focus increasingly on resilience rather than simply attracting more visitors.
Released by the WEF in collaboration with Zurich Insurance Group, the index assesses 110 economies across 17 pillars.
It covered the enabling environment, tourism policy, infrastructure and services, tourism resources and sustainability.
Japan ranked first with a score of 5.27, followed by the US at 5.23 and Spain at 5.22. Australia, France, Germany, the UK, China, Switzerland and Italy completed the top 10.
Malaysia climbed to 26th globally with Zurich Malaysia country CEO Junior Cho saying the improvement reflected progress in strengthening the foundations supporting tourism over the long term.
The report found that 92 per cent of economies improved their scores between 2024 and 2026, with average scores rising 2.1 per cent – the fastest improvement since 2019.
Emerging destinations recorded some of the strongest gains.
Albania improved 7 per cent, followed by Viet Nam at 6.3 per cent and Laos at 6.1 per cent. Asia-Pacific accounted for seven of the 10 most-improved economies, while Southeast Asia recorded the fastest growth among subregions.
The report said tourism’s next challenge is managing growth amid geopolitical tensions, climate events, economic volatility and digital disruptions.
Tourism contributed US$11.6 trillion to the global economy in 2025 and supported 366 million jobs.
But destinations are facing rising costs, infrastructure pressures and workforce shortages.
Some 75 per cent of economies became less affordable for travellers, while the sector could face a 43 million-worker shortfall by 2035.
The WEF said resilient destinations should diversify visitor demand, maintain transport and digital connectivity during disruptions, compete on value rather than price, ensure local communities share tourism benefits and invest in workforce skills and retention.
“Recovery is no longer the central story,” said Ramya Krishnaswamy of the WEF. “The challenge now is ensuring tourism growth creates lasting value.”
AloJapan.com