The World Tourism Organization – now known as UN Tourism – is the most important international organisation in the tourism industry. But what does it actually do? This guide explains its history, structure, aims and day-to-day work.
What is the World Tourism Organization (UN Tourism)?
The World Tourism Organization is the United Nations specialised agency responsible for promoting ‘responsible, sustainable and universally accessible’ tourism. Long known by the acronym UN Tourism, it rebranded as UN Tourism in January 2024. It is the leading international organisation in the tourism sector.
UN Tourism is headquartered in Madrid, Spain. Its origins date back to 1925. In this year, the first international congress of official tourist organisations was held at The Hague. After annual meetings, they formed the International Union of Official Tourist Publicity Organisations known as IUOTPO. This was in 1934. A few years later, this was restructured to form the International Union of Official Travel Organisations (IUOTO).
In 1975, the IUOTO was transformed into the World Tourism Organization (WTO), following a decision in 1970 to enhance its role at an international level. In 2003 it became a specialised agency of the United Nations, and the acronym UN Tourism was adopted to avoid confusion with the World Trade Organization.
UN Tourism has six official languages: Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish.
The structure of UN Tourism
UN Tourism is made up of the following bodies:
The General Assembly, made up of full members and associate members, meets every two years to approve the budget and programme of work and to debate key issues. It also appoints the Secretary-General for a four-year term. Shaikha Al Nowais of the United Arab Emirates became Secretary-General in January 2026, succeeding Zurab Pololikashvili, and is the first woman to lead the organisation.
The Executive Council, which meets at least twice a year, is the governing board responsible for ensuring that the organisation carries out its work and keeps within its budget.
There are also specialised committees, made up of UN Tourism members. The committees advise on management and programme content.
The secretariat, led by the secretary-general, implements the organisation’s programme of work.
What does UN Tourism do?
Major aims of UN Tourism
UN Tourism has 160 member states, along with associate members and more than 500 affiliate members from the private sector, education and destinations. It encourages its members to implement the Global Code of Ethics for Tourism, adopted in 1999. The code has 10 principles:
- Tourism’s contribution to mutual understanding and respect between peoples and societies.
- Tourism as a vehicle for individual and collective fulfilment.
- Tourism, a factor for sustainable development.
- Tourism, a user of the cultural heritage of mankind and contributor to its enhancement.
- Tourism, a beneficial activity for host countries and communities.
- Obligations of stakeholders in tourism development.
- Right to tourism.
- Liberty of tourist movements.
- Rights of the workers and entrepreneurs in the tourism industry.
- Implementation of the principles of the Global Code of Ethics for Tourism.
Each of these articles (you can read them all in detail here) make up the code as a whole and set out voluntary principles about how tourism should be conducted. In 2019, members also adopted the Framework Convention on Tourism Ethics, which turns key parts of the code into a legally binding convention for countries that ratify it. The overarching aim of this code is to maximise the socio-economic contribution of tourism, while minimising its possible negative impact.
UN Tourism also promotes tourism as a way to achieve the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The 17 SDGs were adopted in 2015 and came into force in January 2016. They cover issues such as quality education, decent work and economic growth, and peace, justice and strong institutions, and tourism is specifically mentioned in Goals 8, 12 and 14.
The aforementioned Sustainable Development Goals are part of the wider 2030 Agenda. This global framework was set out to end extreme poverty, fight inequality and injustice and tackle climate change by 2030. Tourism is something that can aid in all of these goals, either directly or indirectly.
The day-to-day role of UN Tourism
On a practical level, UN Tourism collects and publishes tourism statistics and identifies key trends in the industry. Its World Tourism Barometer is one of the most widely cited sources of tourism data; it reported that around 1.4 billion international tourist arrivals took place in 2024, almost fully recovering to pre-pandemic levels.
As part of their role within the tourism industry, UN Tourism offers training and education. It aims to make tourism an effective development tool.
UN Tourism puts together various reports on all sorts of travel and tourism-related topics. Governments and tourist boards can access these reports to improve on what they’re doing. This research helps destinations and travel companies to make tourism more accessible, sustainable and ethical.
These reports also praise tourist boards and governments for the developments that have been made within the industry. They set out what’s going well and where growth has been made. Whether it’s a certain amount of money that tourism in a particular country has generated, or the amount of jobs that have been created, UN Tourism highlights the positive impact of the industry as well as suggesting where changes can be made.
Events
UN Tourism hosts a variety of global events, meetings and summits, including conferences on sustainability, accessibility, gender equality, investment and digital innovation. A calendar of events is available on UN Tourism website.
Once a year, on September 27th, UN Tourism leads an event called World Tourism Day. This is a worldwide celebration of tourism, with official celebrations hosted by a different country each year. Every event has a different theme, such as promoting universal accessibility, or linking cultures.
In summary, UN Tourism plays a central role in shaping global tourism policy, collecting data and promoting sustainable and responsible tourism around the world.
UN Tourism: FAQs
Below are answers to some of the most common questions about UN Tourism.
What is the World Tourism Organization?
The World Tourism Organization, now known as UN Tourism, is the United Nations specialised agency responsible for promoting responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism.
When did UN Tourism become UN Tourism?
The organisation rebranded from UN Tourism to UN Tourism in January 2024.
Where is UN Tourism based?
UN Tourism is headquartered in Madrid, Spain.
How many members does UN Tourism have?
UN Tourism has 160 member states, as well as associate members and more than 500 affiliate members.
What is World Tourism Day?
World Tourism Day is celebrated every year on 27 September to raise awareness of tourism’s social, cultural, political and economic value. Each year has a different theme and host country.
Further reading
If you found this article helpful, the following posts may also be of interest:
- What does the World Travel and Tourism Council do?
- Types of travel and tourism organisations
- The UN Sustainable Development Goals
- Ethical tourism
- What is sustainable tourism?
- International tourism
