World Tourism Day is celebrated on September 27th., a special day for the New 7 Wonders of the World and the New 7 Wonders of Nature, and an important day to highlight that according to data published by the United Nations, during the last six decades, tourism has grown and diversified constantly.

Thanks to this, it has become one of the most important and fastest growing sectors in the world. Communities around the world benefit from it. In fact, it is estimated that this sector represents 10% of the global Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and employs 1 in ten workers.

In the first half of 2025, international tourism recorded nearly 700 million international arrivals, which represents a growth of 5% compared to the same period of 2024, according to data from the World Tourism Organization (UMCO). This figure also represents 4% above the pre-pandemic levels of 2019. Recovery continues to be driven by improved air connectivity. Also due to the growing interest in emerging destinations, especially in regions such as Asia and the Pacific or the Middle East.

The global celebration of World Tourism Day 2025 will be hosted in the city of Melaka, Malaysia, recognized for its cultural heritage, traditional architecture and possibilities to articulate tourism, memory and local identity.

This year, the official motto is “Tourism and sustainable transformation”, which highlights the idea that tourism has to evolve beyond the number of visitors: it must be transformed to generate social welfare, equity and territorial resilience.

In addition, UN-Tourism plans to organize various public events, seminars, workshops and webinars to accompany the day, with emphasis on:

– Conferences and virtual and face-to-face panels that contrast experiences of transformative tourism governance between regions.

– Thematic workshops on sustainable tourism, innovation, social inclusion, governance and green financing, with public and private actors.

– Awareness, dissemination and mobilization activities in host cities and destinations, to make visible good local practices aligned with the motto.

– Tools and digital resources such as publications, guides, dashboards and monitoring strategies that accompany the topic.

The origin of this commemorative date was chosen to coincide with the anniversary of the adoption of the UNTO Statutes on September 27, 1970. Likewise, a date at the end of September is particularly appropriate because it coincides with the end of the high holiday season of the northern hemisphere and the beginning in the southern half of the globe. The purpose is to raise awareness among the international community about the importance of tourism due to its social, cultural, political and economic aspects.

Thus, the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), the specialized agency of the United Nations in charge of promoting responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism, decided to institute World Tourism Day every September 27, to recall the importance of traveling responsibly.