Skip page header and navigation

Kuwait

See the latest market data for Kuwait – including traveller visits and spend, length of stay, behaviours and preferences

Kuwait

Travellers from Kuwait made 4.4 million outbound visits in 2019, with a total international tourism expenditure of US$15.8 billion.

In 2022, the UK welcomed 121,335 visits from Kuwait. During the travellers’ visits, their total expenditure was £304.61 million, with an average spend of £2,510 per person. 

Discover visitor behaviour, travel trade insights, detailed data visualisations for this market – and more. The statistics in this market report are collated from a range of sources such as the Office for National Statistics (ONS), as well as sponsored questions and our own research. For further details, see How we source this information.

Explore the inbound data in full

Use our visualisations to see data from this market in greater depth and clarity. Compare annual statistics, and filter by age group, gender, trip duration and more. Includes seasonality, trip purpose and regional spread of visitors to UK destinations. This data is based on the International Passenger Survey, conducted by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

Please click on the button below and select the country you are interested in.

Global context

Top-level statistics relating to the population, GDP, tourism expenditure and popular destinations for this market. For greater detail on inbound tourism flows from this market to the UK, see our data visualisations.

Measure

2019

International tourism expenditure (US$bn)

15.8

Global rank for international tourism expenditure

23

Number of outbound visits (m)

4.4

Most visited destination

Saudi Arabia

Most visited destination in Western Europe

United Kingdom

Key demographic and economic data

Measure

2023

Population (m)

4.3

GDP per capita PPP (US$)

75,540

Annual average GDP growth over past decade (%)

0.3

Annual GDP growth (%)

1.6

Access to Britain from Kuwait

The key routes and transport modes that connect this market with the UK.

Measure

2023

Weekly aircraft departures

22

Weekly seat capacity

6,239

Airports with direct routes in Kuwait

1

Airports with direct routes in Britain

2

  • Since 2009, seat capacity from Kuwait has increased by 65%.

  • In 2023, the highest share of departing seats came from the Kuwait airport to London Heathrow, with a 90% share.

  • Out of all airlines to operate the Kuwait to Britain route in 2023, Kuwait Airways served the most departing seats with a 74% share.

  • Flights from Kuwait International Airport now serve London Heathrow and Manchester International.

  • The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic led to a 55% reduction in direct seat capacity from Kuwait to the UK in 2020.

  • In 2021, direct seat capacity was 70% behind pre-COVID levels and in 2022 it was 14% behind pre-COVID levels.

  • In 2023, direct seat capacity is set to exceed pre-pandemic levels by 9%.

  • The current reduced rate of Air Passenger Duty for visitors departing Britain for Kuwait is £87.

  • Kuwaiti nationals can pay £30 for a visa waiver to enter the UK.

Further resources

PDF

GCC Market Profile

GCC Market Profile

Download (73.2 MB)
PDF

Kuwait Market Snapshot.pdf

Kuwait Market Snapshot

Download (339.26 KB)
PDF

Kuwait Aviation Profile

Kuwait Aviation Profile

Download (185.12 KB)

How we source this information

We work with a number of data sources to provide a rich and insightful picture of our key inbound source markets. This includes, but is not limited to, data provided by Oxford Economics, the UNWTO, Apex, Anholt-Ipsos Nation Brands Index and from our own surveys and ad-hoc research. The largest share of the data come from the International Passenger Survey (IPS) by the ONS.

Visit our About the International Passenger Survey page for more information on how the data is collected and analysed. 

Discover more

See the latest market data for Bahrain – including traveller visits and spend, length of stay, behaviours and preferences.

Bahrain

See the latest market data for India – including traveller visits and spend, length of stay, behaviours and preferences.

Image flag

India

See the latest market data for Israel – including traveller visits and spend, length of stay, behaviours and preferences.

Image flag

Israel