France is world’s most-visited country in 2016

A new report by the UNWTO (United Nations’ World Tourism Organization) has revealed that France was the most-visited country in the world as it welcomed 82.6 million travellers in 2016. The United States edged out Spain to grab the second rank in the listing of the most-visited countries in the world in 2016. Both played host to around 75.6 million tourists last year.

They were followed by China, Italy, the United Kingdom, Germany, Mexico and Thailand, which took the third to the ninth positions, respectively.

Spain attracts visitors in droves owing to its delicious cuisine, a variety of wines, scenic backdrops and lengthy coastlines. According to The Times of India, the country is home to numerous cathedrals and museums, which include the Prado museum and the Basilica of the Sagrada Familia. Barcelona, the capital of an autonomous province in Spain, is also popular with tourists worldwide for its scenic beaches and attractions such as Camino de Santiago, the Gothic Quarter and so on. The country also hosts what is now one of the most popular festivals, La Tomatina, a food fight festival. In 2017, BLS International, a popular provider of Government to Citizen (G-to-C) services, is reported to be processing about 1.8 million Spanish visa applications.

Meanwhile, in the last few years, the demand for Schengen Visas from India has been soaring. The internal migration and Affairs of the European Commission’s statistics revealed that over 700,000 Schengen visa applications were submitted by nationals of India in 2015. This was an increase of 140,170 submissions compared to the year 2014.

With a Schengen Tourist Visa, its holder can enter 26 countries in Europe. Of these, 22 countries are member states of the European Union and four are from the EEA (European Economic Area).

If you are looking to travel to one of the Schengen member states, get in touch with Y-Axis, a reputed company for immigration services, to apply for a tourist visa.