Colombian arrivals in the US rose 14.1 per cent to 851,667 in January–September 2026, the highest for that period since NTTO's series began in 2000 by our count, passing Italy as overseas arrivals fell 5.7 per cent.
Cover image: Aircraft on the apron at El Dorado International Airport, Bogotá (file photo) — photo by Carlos A. Gaviria-Mendoza, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Residents of Colombia made 851,667 visits to the United States in January–September 2026, up 14.1 per cent year on year and the highest January–September total since the series began in 2000, according to a Travel Market News analysis of I-94 arrivals data from the US National Travel and Tourism Office (NTTO). That lifted Colombia past Italy (786,124, down 12.2 per cent) into ninth place among US overseas source markets, while overall overseas arrivals fell 5.7 per cent.
Colombia added 105,569 visitors, the largest absolute gain of any overseas market and more than double the next, Ecuador (+49,460). NTTO counts visitors who stay at least one night, by country of residence, under qualifying visa types. Its overseas category excludes Canada and Mexico, and the September 2026 figures are preliminary.
How does 2026 compare, and when did Colombia last beat Italy?
By our calculation, the nine-month total clears the previous January–September highs of 753,975 in 2021 and 747,158 in 2024. Colombian arrivals are 25.6 per cent above January–September 2019; overseas arrivals overall are still 20.9 per cent below.
Colombia trailed Italy over the first nine months of every year in the series except 2020 to 2022, when the pandemic distorted travel. On our ranking, ninth is its highest outside 2021 and 2022; it was 12th in 2019.
In September alone, Colombia sent 90,554 visitors (+14.8 per cent), more than France (87,076, down 15.5 per cent), NTTO's preliminary tables show.
Was the World Cup behind it?
The growth predates the tournament. In January–May, before the World Cup opened on 11 June, Colombian arrivals were up 16.0 per cent. June was the busiest month, at 148,942 (+21.4 per cent), but excluding June the nine-month rise is still 12.7 per cent.
Only April (−8.2 per cent) and August (−1.3 per cent) fell.
Migración Colombia counted 106,904 Colombians travelling to the three host countries in the tournament's early weeks, 73,819 of them to the US, El Tiempo reported on 18 June (in Spanish). It said fans following the national team to its matches in Mexico drove part of that World Cup travel surge.
What has changed on the Colombia–US corridor?
Airline supply has been mixed. Colombia's civil aviation authority, Aerocivil, said flights from Colombia to the US fell 11.23 per cent to 561 in 1–11 June, from 632 a year earlier, Portafolio reported on 13 June (in Spanish). Aerocivil linked the drop largely to Spirit Airlines' shutdown and said other airlines had absorbed part of the demand with high occupancy.
Avianca said in April it would operate 42 more weekly US flights in July 2026 than a year earlier, on a network that also serves Central America, including a third daily Bogotá–Orlando flight, The Bulkhead Seat reported.
Visa waits remain long. Tourism visas accounted for 92.5 per cent of Colombian arrivals this year, NTTO data show, while the average wait for a B1/B2 interview in Bogotá was 8.5 months as of 17 September, immigration firm BAL reported.
How does Colombia compare with the wider US slump?
South America was the only overseas region to grow in January–September, by 3.9 per cent, and Colombia supplied about 70 per cent of its 151,213 extra visitors. Western Europe fell 8.7 per cent and Asia 6.1 per cent. Even so, Colombia's gain is equivalent to only about 7 per cent of the 1.45 million fall in overseas arrivals, at a time when global tourism growth has stalled.
Largest gainers and selected losers (NTTO I-94 arrivals, January–September, our calculation; September 2026 preliminary):
| Market | Jan–Sep 2025 | Jan–Sep 2026 | Change | Change (%) | Rank 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colombia | 746,098 | 851,667 | +105,569 | +14.1% | 9 |
| Ecuador | 332,893 | 382,353 | +49,460 | +14.9% | 14 |
| Taiwan | 330,450 | 360,008 | +29,558 | +8.9% | 17 |
| Italy | 895,288 | 786,124 | −109,164 | −12.2% | 10 |
| France | 1,196,020 | 1,012,698 | −183,322 | −15.3% | 7 |
| Germany | 1,326,373 | 1,129,094 | −197,279 | −14.9% | 6 |
| South Korea | 1,187,959 | 953,665 | −234,294 | −19.7% | 8 |
| All overseas markets | 25,558,823 | 24,110,749 | −1,448,074 | −5.7% | n/a |
Just over half of Colombian visitors this year (436,176) gave Florida as their first intended address. Florida is also where Canadian arrivals have kept falling.
On method: records and rankings are our calculations from NTTO's monthly file, comparing January–September totals. NTTO notes that overseas figures become final once the next month's data arrive and are seldom revised.
Frequently asked questions
How many Colombians visited the US in 2026?
NTTO recorded 851,667 arrivals from residents of Colombia in January–September 2026, up 14.1 per cent from 746,098 a year earlier. By our calculation that is the highest January–September total in NTTO's monthly series, which begins in 2000. The September figure of 90,554 is preliminary.
Has Colombia overtaken Italy as a source of US visitors?
Yes, for January–September 2026: Colombia sent 851,667 visitors and Italy 786,124, ranking ninth and tenth among overseas markets (which exclude Canada and Mexico). Outside the pandemic years of 2020 to 2022, Colombia had never led Italy over that period in NTTO's series.
Was the growth caused by the 2026 World Cup?
The growth started before it. Colombian arrivals were up 16.0 per cent in January–May, before the World Cup opened on 11 June. June rose 21.4 per cent, but excluding June the nine-month gain is still 12.7 per cent. The data do not identify football fans, so the tournament's share cannot be isolated.
How long is the wait for a US visitor visa interview in Colombia?
State Department figures updated on 17 September put the average wait for a B1/B2 visitor visa interview in Bogotá at 8.5 months, with the next appointment seven months away, BAL reported. The embassy joined a paid expedited-appointment pilot on 18 August that runs until 31 December 2026, according to Fragomen.
Sources
- NTTO, Monthly I-94 arrivals by country of residence, 2000 to September 2026
- NTTO, Preliminary Summary Analysis, September 2026
- Portafolio, Aerocivil flight data for World Cup hosts (Spanish)
- El Tiempo, Migración Colombia World Cup departures (Spanish)
- The Bulkhead Seat, Avianca expands US network
- BAL, US global visa wait times as of 17 September
- Fragomen, Bogotá joins expedited visa-appointment pilot
