Released: July 2, 2008

U.S. Traveler Advisory

How do the foreign countries that Americans like to visit match up with the countries where people like Americans? A new Pew Research Center analysis answers that question by comparing the list of Americans' favorite foreign destinations with results from recent Pew Global Attitudes surveys.

As it turns out, the countries that Americans visit most often are, for the most part, countries whose residents have a favorable opinion of Americans. In six of their 10 most popular foreign destinations, Americans are well-liked. Opinion is mixed or negative in three nations, and ratings are not available for one country.

The opinions of Americans come from respondents to the 2007 and 2008 Pew Global Attitudes surveys. In the 2008 survey, most residents of 14 foreign nations (out of 23 foreign nations polled) have a favorable view of Americans. The list of foreign countries that Americans visit most frequently comes from a U.S. Commerce Dept. survey of airlines. The latest results, for 2007, were released this week, as the summer travel season gets under way.

Read the full commentary at pewresearch.org