FITUR 2026 will confirm the boom in national and international tourism
FITUR 2026 will confirm the boom and the good evolution of national and international tourism, as shown by the latest data and forecasts for the industry. In Spain, the tourism industry will experience a growth of 3.6% in 2025, surpassing the expansion of the economy as a whole, according to the Consejo General de Economistas (CGE) (Spanish council of economists) which estimates that the weight of the industry in GDP will reach 13.2%. Global tourism is also progressing well, with UN Tourism reporting that 1.4 billion international tourist arrivals will be recorded worldwide in 2024, an 11% increase over the previous year.
FITUR 2026, the International Tourism Trade Fair to be held from 21 to 25 January, with Mexico as Partner Country, will confirm the strength of both national and international tourism, as the latest data and forecasts for the sector show. national and international tourism, as the latest data and forecasts for the sector are already showing. According to estimates by the CGE, the Spanish tourism sector will experience a growth of 3.6% in 2025, exceeding the expansion of the economy as a whole. The entity estimates that the weight of the industry in the GDP of Spain will reach 13.2%.
Growth will come mainly from international tourism, with an expected rise this year of 4.5%; although domestic tourism will be above 2024, from 0.8% then to 1.2% expected this year. The president of the CGE, Valentín Pich, explained that the current situation of tourism in Spain requires a balance between economic growth, sustainability and social welfare. As a result, the industry is facing structural challenges arising from tourism overcrowding, which has reignited the debate on the sustainability and environmental impact of crowded destinations.
For its part, Segittur indicates that Spain will receive more international tourists in 2025 than in 2024 and that Spaniards will make slightly more trips. At least in the first part of the year, according to his estimates for the first four months of the year, when the number of foreign tourists in Spain could exceed 26 million (10% more than the first four months of last year) and domestic travel in Spain could be around 48 million. On the other hand, Exceltur forecasts that tourism's contribution to national GDP in 2025 will be 13.5%, the highest ever.
Improvement in international tourism
International tourism is also evolving. According to UN Tourism's latest World Tourism Barometer, in 2024, international tourism saw a significant recovery, with 1.4 billion tourist arrivals globally, marking a resurgence from the pandemic-induced crisis, while visitor spending also continued to grow strongly. Arrivals represented an 11% increase over 2023, or 140 million more international tourist arrivals, with results driven by strong post-pandemic demand, a solid performance of major source markets and ongoing recovery of Asia-Pacific destinations.