World Tourism Day 2026: Key Findings from Eurostat

For World Tourism Day 2026, we explored the Eurostat datasets to uncover some interesting European Union (EU) tourism statistics.

Some of the key themes we unveiled were around the recovery of the industry after COVID, and inequality and variances across EU member states.

Here are some of the key findings:

1. The Recovery Story

European tourism has staged a remarkable comeback.

After plunging from 65.2% to 52.4% participation during the 2020 pandemic year, the EU27 participation rate climbed back to 64.7% by 2023 — nearly matching the all-time pre-pandemic peak.

What the data shows: It took Europe 3 years to recover from its worst tourism shock in decades. The 2023 rate of 64.7% is within 0.5pp of the 2019 peak (65.2%), confirming that tourism demand has fully rebounded at the EU level.

2. The Participation Gap

Tourism participation varies enormously across Europe.

While 91% of Norwegians took at least one trip in 2023, only 28% of Romanians did.

What the data shows: The 3x gap between top and bottom EU countries reveals how strongly income, geography, and culture shape travel behaviour.

3. The August Peak

Tourism in Europe is intensely seasonal.

August accounts for 143 million trips — 2.4 times the January volume. This extreme concentration puts pressure on infrastructure, the environment, and local communities during peak months.

What the data shows: The summer quarter (Jun-Aug) alone accounts for 391 million trips — 34% of all annual travel, compressed into just 3 months. December sees a secondary spike (+45% vs November) driven by holiday travel.

4. What Europeans Spend

Germany alone spent €177 billion on tourism in 2023, nearly double France (€97B) and more than 3x Spain (€51B).

Per-trip spending ranges from €1,214 in Luxembourg to under €300 in Eastern Europe.

Germany is the EU’s Biggest Spender

What the data shows: The Top 10 spending nations 

5. Domestic vs Abroad: Where Do Europeans Go?

Most European travel stays within borders, but the split varies wildly by country.

Large countries with coastlines and diverse climates keep tourists home, while small landlocked nations send theirs abroad.

6. Tourism as an Employer

The tourism sector directly employed 10.2 million people in the EU27 accommodation and food services sector (NACE I) in 2025; a record high.

The sector has added 2.1 million jobs since the 2008 baseline, proving tourism is one of Europe’s strongest job engines.

What the data shows:Tourism employment crashed by 1.2 million jobs in 2020-2021 but has since recovered and grown beyond pre-pandemic levels. Travel agencies (N79) were hit hardest proportionally (-30%) and have only just regained 2019 headcount in 2025.

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