BRAZIL. International tourism arrivals to Brazil have reached a new record in 2025, surpassing the nine million mark for the first time, according to national tourism agency Embratur.
The figure is a +40% leap year-on-year (with final December figures yet to be confirmed) and +30% ahead of forecast under the National Tourism Plan for 2024 to 2027.
“Reaching the milestone of nine million international tourists by 2025 shows that Brazil has definitively returned to the world tourism map,” said Embratur/Visit Brasil President Marcelo Freixo. “It is a historic number that generates jobs, income and development in all regions of the country, in addition to reinforcing tourism as one of the great drivers of our economy.”
Recent data suggest this strong upward trend will continue in 2026. A survey conducted by Embratur in December revealed a +23.2% increase in international airline ticket sales for the annual Carnival celebration in 2026 compared to 2025. For the key period from 7-15 February 2026 there were already 88,600 reservations by early December.
For Summer 2026 advance airline ticket bookings are up by +6.6% year-on-year. The markets showing the highest growth are Argentina, Chile, USA, Portugal and France.
New Year’s Eve celebrations across Brazil will also boost the tourism sector as 2025 ends. From 25 to 31 December, ticket purchases by foreign visitors totalled 101,117, +7.5% higher than the figure for the same period a year ago.
The survey considered the 13 states with airports that operate international routes to and from Brazil: São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Minas Gerais, Federal District, Rio Grande do Sul, Santa Catarina, Paraná, Bahia, Ceará, Pernambuco, Rio Grande do Norte, Alagoas and Pará.
The number of flights to Brazil from January to November 2025 also reflects a healthy increase. According to Embratur’s data panel, in the first 11 months the country registered 68,872 flight landings from abroad, +17.7% higher than in the same period last year.
Argentina stood out as the largest source country for tourists to Brazil in the first 11 months, at 3.1 million, up by +82.1% year-on-year. Next was Chile with 721,497 arrivals between January and November 2025, representing growth of +24.4%. In third place was the USA with 677,888 arrivals, a rise of +5.8%, followed by Uruguay with 487,514 tourists, a leap of +37.2%. In fifth position was Paraguay, with 454,327 foreign arrivals, up +14.4% on a year earlier.
Key gateways
Among the destination states within Brazil, São Paulo received the most international tourists in 2025 (January to November), with almost 2.5 million arrivals. Rio de Janeiro ranked second with 1,972,928 foreign tourists.
Rio Grande do Sul occupied third place and registered 1,431,795 arrivals. 958,015 international visitors arrived in Paraná between January and November, placing the state as the fourth largest gateway, with Santa Catarina in fifth with 651,980 arrivals.
2025 also looks like marking the highest-ever volume of revenues generated by international tourism in Brazil over a full year.
From January to November alone, international visitors spent US$7.17 billion in the country’s economy, +8.4% higher compared to the same period last year and close to the 12-month total for 2024, which was US$7.3 billion, according to data released by the Central Bank. ✈
