Spectacular skyscrapers, man-made islands and XXL amusement parks: Dubai is said to be the most popular travel destination in the world. That’s going out a ranking by the travel provider Tui, which evaluated the most used hashtags in various cities and regions on the TikTok platform and concluded how popular each place is as a travel destination.
According to the article, a whopping 69.3 percent of Germans get inspiration for their vacation on social media, around 13 percent of them on TikTok – and for Gen Z it’s even 35 percent. The travel provider’s conclusion: “Hashtags are the key to viral destinations.” But is it really that simple?
Dubai as a “unique mix of tradition and modernity”
With more than 30 million monthly hashtags, Dubai not only dominates the social media world, but also tops the list of the top 50 TikTok travel destinations. The Arab Emirate can convince even before London and Barcelona. Dubai is said to offer a “unique mix of tradition and modernity” with its breathtaking skyscrapers, luxurious hotels and endless entertainment options.
Even the British capital, with its historical landmarks such as the Tower of London and Buckingham Palace, or Barcelona with Gaudí’s architecture, golden beaches and lively culture, apparently cannot compete with this. Paris and Istanbul follow in fourth and fifth place. Also noticeable: Abu Dhabi (ninth place) is the second Arab emirate to land in the top ten.
As the best – and only – German city, only the German capital makes it into the top 50 and takes 14th place. With almost a tenth of the hashtags used monthly for Dubai, Berlin had 3.5 million hashtags here in September 2024 .
In addition to the “50 best destinations 2024/25”, the tourism company has also identified the top 10 hottest TikTok destinations in Europe in collaboration with the opinion research institute Appinio. Here, Madrid recorded the largest “hashtag increase” between April and September, at around 26 percent, ahead of Paris and Marseille. The top ten destinations in America and Asia were also chosen.
According to the tourism company’s contribution, TikTok has long been more than just a social media platform. Accordingly, traveling is not just about ticking off sights, but is also about sharing moments, experiencing cultures and discovering places that may be off the beaten path. This is precisely why – and because of special attractions or events – some travel destinations are experiencing a real hype on TikTok.
However, whether the hashtags actually say anything about the attractiveness of the individual cities as travel destinations remains to be seen. The use of hashtags can certainly be understood as an indication of the popularity of a city as a travel destination, but should hardly serve as the only indicator – as is the case here.
The number of hashtags that the city names use after their hash sign says something about the quantity of videos, but less about their content quality. Accordingly, high numbers can also be the result of trends or challenges that have only a limited connection to the city itself – think of the frequently discussed “Dubai chocolate”.
So should the Arab Emirate undoubtedly be seen as the “No.1 travel destination” on TikTok? Probably not. In addition to #dubai, #berlin or #paris, at least other hashtag variations should be considered in order to be able to say without reservation which is the most popular travel destination. However, the study does provide an indication of where people prefer to travel.
