Impressive architecture in Cologne, Germany: Crane houses on the Rhine – Image: GNTB/Francesco Carovillano
Destination Germany once again enjoys an excellent international image. In the Anholt Nation Brands Index (NBI) 2025, Germany ranks second among 50 nations worldwide – behind Japan and ahead of Canada, Italy, and Switzerland. As in previous years, Germany is also the leader among the 30 European countries included in the NBI.
Compared to 2024, particularly relevant for Germany as a travel destination are its stable placement at rank 10 in the location factor “tourism” and an improvement in the perception of the “culture” factor, rising from rank 6 to rank 3. As in the previous year, “historic buildings” and “vibrant cities” continue to shape Germany’s positive image within the evaluation of tourism-related aspects.
Petra Hedorfer, Chairwoman of the Executive Board of the German National Tourist Board (GNTB): “Against the backdrop of global multilateral crises and conflicts, the consistently strong image of Germany as a travel destination makes an important contribution to its successful positioning in the international competition among tourist destinations. This enables us to credibly promote Germany as a quality travel destination, particularly in city and cultural tourism, and further strengthen the economic added value of inbound tourism – €77.7 billion in 2024, according to IPK International.”
A special analysis conducted by the National Institute for Tourism (NBI) on behalf of the GNTB revealed that tourists worldwide primarily associate Germany with brand attributes such as fascinating, exciting, and educational, followed by relaxing and romantic. International cultural tourists’ expectations of Germany are primarily shaped by cultural heritage, local traditions, cuisine, impressive architecture, and art/museums/festivals, followed by multicultural events and venues, music events, street art, and theater and ballet.
According to MMGY’s 2025 Portrait of American and Canadian International Travelers™, 70% of American international travelers express interest in visiting historic and cultural sites, and 64% in art and history museums. Visiting historical sites ranks among the top leisure activities, particularly for Generation X and Baby Boomer travelers, with interest levels ranging between 65% and 87%. These figures highlight the strong cultural orientation of U.S. travelers, positioning Germany’s wealth of UNESCO World Heritage Sites, museums, and historical landmarks as particularly relevant to their travel interests.
This confirms the positioning of the Destination Germany brand as a leading city and cultural travel destination and the strategic orientation of the GNTB‘s global marketing for Germany as a service-oriented, quality travel destination.
About:
The Anholt Nation Brands Index (NBI) was developed by independent British policy advisor Simon Anholt. Since 2005, the NBI has been determining the brand value of 50 leading economies in 20 countries through surveys based on six sub-indices: exports, government, culture, people, tourism, and immigration/investment, which in turn are composed of 23 location factors. (NAN/GNTB 22-10-25)
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