- A new study ranked the world’s most overcrowded tourist destinations.
- Vatican City topped the list, with a staggering ratio of 7,709 tourists per resident.
- Other high-ranking destinations include Andorra, San Marino, the Bahamas, and Saint Kitts and Nevis—but you can visit during shoulder season to avoid crowds.
An estimated 1.4 billion people traveled internationally in 2024, bringing tourism numbers back up to their pre-pandemic level. While this means more people are able to explore the world again, it also means that some of the world’s most sought-after destinations are experiencing tourism booms.
In July, the safari company Go2Africa released its findings on which countries, states, and tourist destinations are the most overcrowded. To find out the answer, the team reached out to national tourist boards to determine how many people visit each place, then compared those numbers to the population data for the same year, allowing them to calculate the ratio of tourists to local residents for each location.
“Although the total number of international visitors to a country gives us a good indication of which areas are the busiest, comparing these numbers with the population figures of a location gives us a better idea of where tourism might be overcrowding local areas,” the team explained.
After looking at the numbers, it named Vatican City as the most overcrowded tourist destination, with “an incredible 7,709 tourists to every resident.”
“While this ratio is extreme, it comes with context: Vatican City, based within Rome, is just 0.44 square kilometers in size and is a place of pilgrimage and cultural significance for many people around the world. Its tiny population of 882 consists mainly of clergy, diplomats, and officials, making it unlike any typical country,” it added.
There are, however, ways to experience Vatican City as if you have the place all to yourself.
Your best bet is to start by traveling during Italy’s shoulder season, which usually falls between March and April or October through November, when tourist numbers dip just a bit, ensuring thinner crowds at the Vatican and beyond.
Next, try a guided tour. This ensures you’ll learn everything you can while visiting the Vatican and you’ll have time to appreciate all the little details, even if there are throngs of other people. Get Your Guide has a ton of options with tours by local experts, including some that let you skip the ticket line.
Want the full VIP experience? Book a day with luxury travel experts like Access Italy, who can help you navigate the best times to visit, snag tickets for you, and help with every little detail of your Italian getaway so you never have to lift a finger.
The Vatican, however, wasn’t the only popular place to make the list. Andorra, a small country tucked between Spain and France, came in second on the list thanks to it welcoming 9.6 million visitors in 2024, compared to just 81,938 locals. San Marino, the Bahamas, and Saint Kitts and Nevis rounded out the top five. Again, they’re all still worth seeing, but plotting out a shoulder season trip may be the best way to see them all.
