The 100 Millionth Tourist Arrives: Are Brands Ready?
- Date
- Written by Darwin & Verne
Spain is on the verge of becoming the world's leading tourism powerhouse. If forecasts are accurate, we will close this year with 95 million foreign tourists. The most optimistic predictions pointed to a record 100 million annual visitors by the end of the decade, but projections have skyrocketed, and we are expected to reach that figure by 2025, surpassing France.
95 million tourists, 3 million jobs, and 13% of GDP. Tourism is no longer just a sector; it is “the sector.” The most dynamic industry is driving the economy, as reflected in GDP and employment data, but it is also putting pressure on society. It delivers positive headlines—jobs, hotel occupancy, off-season tourism—but also negative ones: gentrification, overcrowding, and the transformation of cities into theme parks.
We host two tourists per Spanish citizen. This is a much higher proportion (48.8 million locals versus 95 million visitors) than in other top tourist destinations like the US, Italy, Turkey, or China. Do Spanish companies consider them when targeting potential customers? Do public administrations design their services with this floating population in mind?
The 100 millionth tourist will likely arrive in Spain by the end of 2025. We imagine them planning their trip: most likely seeking ideas on ChatGPT, browsing influencer profiles, and picking holiday plans like running a San Silvestre race, taking photos with the Christmas lights in Madrid and Vigo, or visiting the new cross-viewpoint at Barcelona's Sagrada Familia, set to open next year.
The creative brand consultancy Darwin & Verne has published a report in anticipation of the 100 millionth tourist milestone, highlighting trends and variables to consider in any business strategy, with Artificial Intelligence playing a significant role.
What does the 100 millionth tourist look like?
- A sophisticated tourist. The seasonal and predictable tourist has given way to a visitor with greater purchasing power, seeking to blend in with the country and demanding creative, shared experiences that stand apart from the guided and structured trips they took with their parents.
This experience-driven tourism ties into the universal need for discovery and the magnetism of arriving at and exploring the unknown, as noted by Fernando Alonso-Cortés, director of Beagle, the customer experience unit at Darwin & Verne. Influencers play a crucial role here. “They act as a kind of digital word of mouth, amplifying a less-known but highly aspirational offering,” emphasizes Fernando. - A spectator and athlete tourist. Moving away from the stereotype of a "sun and beach country" is helping Spain establish itself as a destination associated with quality of life, entertainment, culture, and shopping, with a very positive effect on off-season tourism.
"We have become the world's top destination for festivals, overtaking the UK. From the earliest ones, like FIB, Spain's geography is dotted with these experience theaters, increasingly supported by regional and local governments," explains Fernando Alonso-Cortés.
Statistics from the Ministry of Culture estimate that 2.16 million foreign tourists attended sporting events in Spain in 2023. Additionally, 11 out of the 85 million tourists who visited us last year came primarily to practice a sport. - A medical tourist. This is the major trend in 21st-century tourism, expected to generate $200 billion annually by the end of the decade. The global citizen seeks destinations offering everything from beauty treatments to hair transplants, in vitro fertilization, and plastic, dental, and gender reassignment surgeries. The medical tourist is driven by price, service quality, and privacy.
A report by The Economist states that patients get hair transplants in Turkey, undergo gender reassignment in Thailand, fix their teeth in Hungary, and receive fertility treatments in Spain.
Indices like the Medical Tourism Index (MTI) rank Spain fourth, behind Canada, Singapore, and Japan. This tourism podium aligns with international assessments of the quality of Spanish healthcare. - An integrated tourist. Spain is not just a country to pass through. Our lifestyle is magnetic: gastronomy, vibrant street life, freedom and tolerance, public services, artistic heritage, safety, and the climate form an unbeatable combination. Tourists come back. Tourists want to stay.
As Fernando Alonso-Cortés points out, “Spain is unbeatable because it has the three S's: Sun, Socialization, and Safety.” While hundreds of thousands of British and German retirees settled along the Mediterranean coast and islands at the end of the last century, the age and intentions of foreign residents have evolved.
Two types of residents are particularly on the rise: digital nomads, supported by the Startup Law that provides legal and tax benefits for teleworking and entrepreneurship in Spain, and high-net-worth immigrants choosing Spain as their first or second home. Driven by the Golden Visa, more than 14,000 non-EU nationals have purchased property in Spain over the past decade to enjoy the benefits of living in the Schengen Area. - A bleisure tourist. The pandemic seemed to foreshadow a crisis in the trade fair and conference business due to the rise of digital networking. However, in Spain, pre-pandemic figures have been surpassed, with record highs achieved at IFEMA (Madrid) and Fira de Barcelona in 2023. The economic impact of conference tourism amounts to €5.1 billion in Madrid and €4.7 billion in Barcelona.
Are we talking about tourism or business? An English neologism defines this travel model: bleisure, a blend of business and leisure. It refers both to trade fair and conference attendees who extend their stay in Spain for leisure and to the trend of companies rewarding employees by hosting an annual convention or teambuilding activity in another country. - A tourist guided by AI. Digitalization has revolutionized tourism over the last decade, transforming the entire value chain: from bookings to check-ins, from choosing the trip to post-visit reviews. It has particularly impacted pricing strategies, with airlines and hotels adopting dynamic pricing thanks to the analytical power of digital buyer behavior.
According to a Deloitte report in the U.S., 42% of Gen Z youths plan their trips influenced by videos they see on social media. This behavior is mirrored by 26% of millennials.
However, the most disruptive finding of the survey is how Generative Artificial Intelligence is beginning to take hold as a tool for travel planning and organization: 14% of millennials and 12% of Gen Z admit they are already using AI to plan their trips.
