Experience

Antwerp tourism breaks records again in 2025 with strong growth in day visitors, overnight stays and international events

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Antwerp recorded another exceptional tourism year in 2025, welcoming a record number of visitors and confirming its position as one of Belgium’s leading city destinations. The city counted 16,271,561 day visitors, an increase of 3% compared with 2024, while stay tourism rose even more sharply. 

Overnight stays reached 3.18 million, representing a growth of 15.2% and marking a new all-time high for Antwerp.

More international day visitors

The growth in day tourism was visible among both domestic and international visitors, but international day visitors were the main driving force, increasing by 3%. As a result, their share rose from 31% in 2024 to 32.4% in 2025. International day visitors also tend to stay longer in the city, spending an average of six hours in Antwerp, which is one hour and 20 minutes longer than domestic day visitors.

Most international day visitors came from neighbouring countries. The Netherlands accounted for 44% of all international day visits, followed by Germany with 8%. France, Spain and the United Kingdom each represented 5%, closely followed by the United States with 4%.

The busiest days of 2025 were concentrated in the summer and autumn, driven by major events such as the Antwerp 10 Miles, Night of the Proms, Antwerp Pride and concerts by Ed Sheeran and Drake. The winter period also proved popular, with Christmas shopping and Winter in Antwerp attracting large crowds. The absolute peak day was 20 December, when the city welcomed 129,003 visitors.

Alderman for Tourism Koen Kennis (N-VA) emphasised the broader impact of these figures: “A city that is pleasant for its residents naturally attracts visitors. Events play a crucial role in this, as the figures clearly show. From the Bollekesfeest and Antwerp Pride to major international concerts, these moments encourage visitors to stay overnight and explore the city’s shops, restaurants and museums. Business tourism is also an important pillar of our tourism sector, and the cooperation with the Antwerp Convention Bureau is already delivering its first results.”

Record year for overnight tourism

Overnight tourism once again broke records in 2025, surpassing even the strong results of 2024. A total of 3.18 million overnight stays were recorded, 15.2% more than the previous year. As in 2024, foreign visitors dominated stay tourism, accounting for 67% of overnight guests, compared with 33% domestic visitors. 

The Netherlands remained the largest source market with 31.5% of hotel guests, followed by Germany (14%) and the United Kingdom (8%). France and the United States completed the top five, each with 6.5%.

Recreational tourism continued to drive overnight stays, representing 67% of all overnights, an increase of 2% compared with the year before. Antwerp hotels achieved an average occupancy rate of 70.4%, slightly higher than in 2024. The average daily room rate stood at €117.70, a decrease of €2.90 compared with the previous year.

Didier Boehlen, chairman of the Antwerp Hotel Association, noted: “Antwerp continues to strengthen its profile as a city trip destination, with strong weekend growth and a clear appeal in neighbouring countries. In a competitive market, average room prices and weekday occupancy remain points of attention, especially in combination with the doubling of VAT. Together with our partners, we therefore continue to focus on strengthening midweek tourism.”

Antwerp remains a leading congress destination

Antwerp also reinforced its position as a top destination for meetings, incentives, conferences and events (MICE). Overnight stays linked to MICE activities increased by 24.7% in 2025, rising from 414,902 in 2024 to 517,534. Business events accounted for 92.7% of these stays, while associations and professional organisations represented 7.3%, an increase of 1.5% compared with the previous year.

Most participants in multi-day events came from Belgium (44%), followed by the Netherlands (16%), Germany (7%) and France (5%). These figures underline Antwerp’s importance as a host city for international meetings and conferences.

Tadeja Pivc-Coudyser, CEO of the Antwerp Convention Bureau, commented: “The 24.7% growth in MICE-related overnight stays demonstrates the positive and sustainable evolution of Antwerp as an international congress and meeting destination. Business events remain a key engine, while the association market continues to gain importance. These events bring international visitors to the city, generate additional spending and employment, and connect global expertise with Antwerp’s universities, companies and economic clusters.”

Museums, attractions and visitor centres perform strongly

Antwerp’s cultural attractions also enjoyed a successful year. The city’s museums welcomed more than 2 million visitors in total. The Museum Aan de Stroom (Museum At the Stream, MAS) and the Middelheim Museum, which celebrated its 75th anniversary, were among the main crowd-pullers, alongside popular temporary exhibitions such as ‘Vrouwenzaken/Zakenvrouwen‘ at Museum Plantin-Moretus and ‘GIRLS‘ at the fashion museum MoMu. The Royal Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp (KMSKA) alone attracted 572,216 visitors, reinforcing its status as an international icon.

ZOO Antwerp continued to draw large numbers, while attractions such as the Ruien, Plopsa Station Antwerp and Stadsbrouwerij De Koninck together welcomed 1,080,667 visitors.

The city’s visitor centres at Het Steen and Antwerp-Central Railway Station matched their 2024 record with nearly 575,000 visitors. Two thirds of these visitors came from abroad, while 20% were Antwerp residents. 

The most popular products included postcards and magnets from Galerie Frits, the ATV walking rally, Elixir d’Anvers and the iconic Antwerp Handjes. 

Sales of the Antwerp City Pass increased by 15% compared with 2024, with strong demand from international visitors. The immersive experience The Antwerp Story at Het Steen also attracted more foreign tourists than ever, welcoming its 100,000th visitor by the end of the year following a major update.

Growth in river cruises and unique firsts

Cruise tourism continued to grow in 2025. Antwerp received 978 river cruises carrying 145,548 passengers, representing increases of 6% in passenger numbers and 8% in arrivals compared with 2024. The city also welcomed 15 sea cruises, accounting for 8,606 passengers.

A notable first was the arrival of the Star Pride from Windstar Cruises, Antwerp’s first-ever bicycle cruise. All passengers brought their own bicycles or tandems on board, resulting in a remarkable logistical operation when 260 bicycles rolled off the ship at Het Steen, allowing cruise tourists to explore the city by bike. 

In autumn 2025, the luxury superyacht Ilma from The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection also docked in Antwerp for the first time, offering exclusively suite accommodation and nearly as many crew members as passengers.

Outlook for 2026

The outlook for 2026 is equally promising, with a packed calendar of events, including Smaakmeesters Deluxe from 9 February to 1 March, the exhibition ‘The Antwerp Six‘ at MoMu from 28 March, the start of the cycling Tour of Flanders on 5 April, the Michelin-star ceremony on 4 May, Antwerp.Fashion Festival from 4 to 7 June, The Tall Ships Races from 11 to 14 July, Antwerp Pride from 5 to 9 August, Smaakmeesters in October and Winter in Antwerp in December.

With strong growth across leisure, business tourism and cultural attractions, Antwerp closed 2025 as a record-breaking year and enters 2026 with confidence as an attractive, international and versatile city destination.

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