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Customs conflict is slowing down Spain's tourism: boom is coming to an end!
Spain's tourism industry sees declining growth forecasts in 2025 due to tariff conflicts, despite increasing visitor numbers from Asia.
Customs conflict is slowing down Spain's tourism: boom is coming to an end!
Spain's tourism industry is facing challenging times as summer business is expected to slow significantly. After years of booming, current developments show that uncertainties caused by a customs conflict with the USA are putting a strain on the industry. This reports n-tv.
The assessments by the industry association Exceltur are alarming. For the third quarter of 2025, sales growth of only 2.7 percent is forecast for hotels, airlines and restaurants. In the same period last year, growth was 6.3 percent, and in the second quarter of 2025 it was 4.5 percent. Oscar Perelli, vice president of Exceltur, explains that expectations for the year have been revised downwards.
Decline in arrivals from central markets
What is particularly striking is the estimate that the number of visitors from Germany and France could decline. This contrasts with arrivals from the UK, US, Japan and China, which are expected to increase but at a slower rate than in previous years. Travel flows are changing as more and more Europeans choose to travel within Europe, while Asians look for alternatives to the USA.
The growth forecast for the entire industry was lowered to 3.3 percent, compared to 4 percent originally expected. The tourism sector is expected to grow faster than the overall Spanish economy, which is aiming for growth of 2.4 percent. According to the World Travel and Tourism Council, a record 100 million visitors are expected to visit Spain in 2025. Tourism is expected to contribute around 13.2 percent to the country's gross domestic product.
Overtourism and protests
Despite this positive outlook, Spain faces the challenge of overtourism. More and more tourists are visiting the country, which has both positive and negative effects. How Mirror reports, there are increasing protests against overcrowding in popular destinations. These voices demand a rethink in tourism policy in order to protect the needs of local residents and the environment.
The tourism sector in Spain is therefore at a turning point. Despite the challenges, economic expectations remain positive, but social and ecological aspects are becoming increasingly important. Finding a balance between tourism growth and the quality of life of the local population will be one of the central tasks of the next few years.