Japan tops tourism resilience index as Malaysia makes notable jump
The World Economic Forum's Travel & Tourism Development Index 2026 placed Japan first, with Malaysia rising to 26th as destinations shift focus to resilience.
In the World Economic Forum's Travel & Tourism Development Index for 2026, Japan achieved the highest score of 5.27, edging out the United States (5.23) and Spain (5.22). Malaysia climbed to 26th place, a rise attributed to progress in building durable tourism infrastructure, as noted by Zurich Malaysia country CEO Junior Cho. The index, produced with Zurich Insurance Group, evaluated 110 economies across 17 pillars covering policy, infrastructure, resources and sustainability.
A striking 92% of economies improved their scores from 2024 to 2026, with an average increase of 2.1%, the quickest since 2019. Emerging destinations such as Albania, Viet Nam and Laos posted the strongest percentage gains, and Asia-Pacific dominated the list of most-improved economies. The report cautions that tourism's next hurdle will be managing expansion amid geopolitical tensions, climate events, economic volatility and digital disruption, urging destinations to diversify demand and invest in workforce skills.
