Tanzania tourism recorded strong growth in 2023 and 2024. International arrivals rose from 1,454,920 in 2022 to 1,808,205 in 2023, then to 2,141,895 in 2024. Tourism earnings followed the same direction, reaching USD 3,903.1 million in 2024.
Contents
- Tourism growth and earnings
- Arrivals and recovery
- Source markets
- Why visitors travel
- Length of stay and travel arrangements
- Visitor groups and trip patterns
- Zanzibar tourism statistics
Tourism growth and earnings
The 2023 International Visitors Exit Survey Report recorded tourism earnings of USD 3,373.8 million in 2023, compared with USD 2,527.8 million in 2022. That was a 33.5% increase. The same report put overall average expenditure per person per night in the United Republic of Tanzania (URT) at USD 250 in 2023, up from USD 214 in 2022, a 17% rise.
The 2024 Tanzania Tourism Sector Survey Report recorded another increase. Tourism earnings reached USD 3,903.1 million in 2024, up 15.7% from USD 3,373.8 million in 2023. The two reporting periods show continued growth in both visitor volume and tourism receipts.
| Measure | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| International arrivals | 1,454,920 | 1,808,205 | 2,141,895 |
| Tourism earnings | USD 2,527.8 million | USD 3,373.8 million | USD 3,903.1 million |
| URT average expenditure per person per night | USD 214 | USD 250 | — |
The 2023 survey covered 8 border points and collected responses from 12,372 visitors representing 123 countries. These details describe the survey’s measurement scope rather than the total number of international visitors.
Arrivals and recovery
International arrivals increased by 24.3% in 2023, reaching 1,808,205 from 1,454,920 in 2022. In 2024, arrivals increased a further 18.5% to 2,141,895. The 2024 Tanzania Tourism Sector Survey Report stated that this total exceeded pre-pandemic levels by 40%.
The same report described different growth rates across periods. Before COVID-19, international visitor arrivals grew at an average annual rate of 7% over five years. After COVID-19, the average annual growth rate was 48%. These are reported period averages, not forecasts for a future year.
Visitor duration also formed a large part of the 2024 picture. Among URT visitors, those staying 8 to 14 nights represented 43.0% of the total. Visitors staying 4 to 7 nights accounted for 31.5%, while 15 to 28 nights represented 13.0%. Short stays of 1 to 3 nights accounted for 8.5%.
Longer stays were less common: visitors staying 29 to 91 nights represented 3.9%, and those staying 92 to 360 nights represented 0.1%. Together, the reported categories show that the largest measured group stayed 8 to 14 nights, followed by the 4 to 7-night group.
Source markets
The 2023 International Visitors Exit Survey Report identified the United States as the leading URT source market, accounting for 16.5% of visitors. Italy contributed 8.7%, Germany 7.6%, Zambia 6.8%, and the United Kingdom 5.9%.
France accounted for 5.4% of URT visitors, followed by Kenya at 5.1% and Spain at 4.8%. Burundi represented 3.8%, Uganda 3.3%, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo 3.0%.
Other reported URT source-market shares included Zimbabwe at 2.6%, India at 1.9%, the Netherlands at 1.8%, Canada at 1.8%, and Australia at 1.7%.
| URT source market | Share of visitors, 2023 |
|---|---|
| United States | 16.5% |
| Italy | 8.7% |
| Germany | 7.6% |
| Zambia | 6.8% |
| United Kingdom | 5.9% |
| France | 5.4% |
| Kenya | 5.1% |
| Spain | 4.8% |
Zanzibar’s source-market profile was different in the same 2023 report. Italy was the largest listed market at 21.1%, followed by Germany at 16.4% and France at 13.1%. Spain accounted for 9.8%, the Netherlands 9.2%, the United Kingdom 8.2%, and the United States 8.1%. Australia contributed 5.1%.
These percentages are reported separately for URT and Zanzibar. They should not be combined as though they represented one identical geographic sample.
Why visitors travel
Leisure and holidays dominated the URT purpose-of-visit profile in 2023. The category accounted for 86.0% of visitors. Visiting friends and relatives represented 7.6%, business 3.3%, meetings and conferences 1.7%, and volunteering 1.0%.
Zanzibar had a more varied reported purpose profile. Leisure and holidays still led at 65.4%, but visiting friends and relatives accounted for 14.9%. Business represented 10.3%, meetings and conferences 3.6%, and volunteering 3.3%.
The contrast indicates that the purpose mix measured in Zanzibar was less concentrated in leisure than the URT profile. The figures describe visitor shares in 2023 and do not measure the value or duration of each activity.
In 2024, leisure and holidays visitors generated USD 3,770.8 million of URT earnings, equal to 96.6% of total earnings. Package-tour visitors generated USD 2,685.9 million, or 68.8% of total URT earnings. These are earnings shares, so they are not directly comparable with the 2023 purpose-of-visit percentages.
Length of stay and travel arrangements
The 2023 survey reported an average URT stay of 10 nights, compared with 9 nights in 2022. It also reported that 84% of URT visitors stayed between 4 and 28 nights.
Zanzibar’s average length of stay was 6 nights in 2023, down from 7 nights in 2022. About 75% of Zanzibar visitors stayed between 8 and 28 nights according to the report. The average and distribution figures describe different measures, so the 6-night average should not be treated as a replacement for the 8-to-28-night share.
Travel arrangements differed by visitor experience. In URT, 90.0% of repeat visitors used non-package arrangements, while 61.0% of first-time visitors preferred package tours. The report also found that 89.8% of first-time visitors came for leisure and holidays, compared with 56.6% of repeat visitors.
The 2024 report gave package-tour earnings additional context. Package-tour visitors generated 68.8% of total URT earnings. This does not mean that 68.8% of all visitors bought packages; it is an earnings share.
Visitor groups and trip patterns
The 2023 URT visitor profile included several travel-party categories. Visitors traveling alone accounted for 32.1%, while those traveling with a spouse represented 26.4%. Friends and relatives accounted for 19.0%.
Travelers with a spouse and children represented 11.8%. Visitors traveling with children accounted for 6.0%, and those traveling with parents represented 4.7%. These categories show how visitors described their travel party during the survey period.
The combination of travel-party and stay data gives a more detailed view of Tanzania’s visitor market. A trip can be defined by who travels together, how long the visit lasts, why the visitor comes, and whether the booking uses a package. The reported statistics measure each of these dimensions separately.
Zanzibar tourism statistics
Zanzibar’s tourism indicators increased in 2024. Tourism earnings reached USD 997.8 million, up 10.1% from USD 906.6 million in 2023. Tourist arrivals reached 601,006 in 2024, an increase of 10.8% from 2023.
The average length of stay in Zanzibar rose to 7 nights in 2024, one night higher than in 2023. Package-tour visitors generated 63.6% of Zanzibar tourism earnings in 2024.
| Zanzibar measure | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Tourism earnings | USD 906.6 million | USD 997.8 million |
| Tourist arrivals | — | 601,006 |
| Average length of stay | 6 nights | 7 nights |
| Package-tour share of tourism earnings | — | 63.6% |
Zanzibar therefore showed growth in earnings, arrivals, and average stay between the reported periods. Its 2023 visitor profile also differed from the URT profile in source markets and purpose of travel: Italy led Zanzibar’s source markets at 21.1%, while leisure and holidays accounted for 65.4% of visitors.
For Tanzania tourism analysis, the national and island figures are most useful when kept geographically explicit. URT results describe the survey’s URT coverage, while Zanzibar results describe Zanzibar’s separate tourism measures. The 2023 International Visitors Exit Survey Report and the Tanzania Tourism Sector Survey Report 2024 report the measurement periods and definitions used here.