Spanish sun and beach tourism is experiencing an unprecedented transformation with a projected growth of 6.7% in the next four years. Thus, traditional destinations are evolving towards more sustainable and diversified models, betting on innovation and technology to offer unique experiences and attract new market segments.
According to data from The Business Research Company published in September 2024, the sector will grow 6.7% in the next four yearsdriven by initiatives such as the commitment to data intelligence, the improvement of air connectivity and the diversification of the offer.
Traditional destinations, far from settling for their past success, are betting on innovation, sustainability and diversification to consolidate its leadership in an increasingly competitive and demanding market.
According to the latest data from The Business Research Company, sun and beach tourism will continue to grow in the coming years, but will do it differently. The destinations of the Alliance of Sun and Beach Tourist Municipalities (AMT), aware of this new scenario, are leading this transformation towards a more sustainable and diversified model.
AMT destinations are betting on innovative data-based management to offer unique and diversified experiences that attract new market segments.
Mabrian presented these data during the recent assembly of the Alliance of Sun and Beach Tourist Municipalities (AMT Sol y Playa) held in Lloret de Mar and, in which its mayor, Adrià Lamelas, assumed the presidency for 2025.
The climate, strategic value
The climatic conditions of the AMT destinations are a great attraction, but they also represent an opportunity to deseasonalize demand. Mabrian has identified that travelers French, British and Americans are the most sensitive to weather conditions extreme. This information allows promotional campaigns to be segmented and attract these markets in seasons with milder temperatures.
“The enjoyment of the climate is, and will continue to be, a fundamental driver for Spanish and world tourismto the extent that it evolves towards a sustainable growth model that, as in the case of AMT destinations, are committed to the transformation of their value proposition,” says Carlos Cendra, partner and director of Marketing and Communication at Mabrian.
The weather conditions of the Spanish sun and beach destinations, and in particular those that are part of the AMT, are an established demand driver and that remains constant among European demand, as Mabrian data points out.
The average of the Climate Perception Index of the eight AMT destinations in the last 12 months (89 out of 100 possible points) is 6 points above the index for all of Spain (83), and it remains stable, all of this, despite the impact that the effects of DANA last October have had on the climate perception of both Spain and some destinations in the alliance.
Precisely, this stability of climate perception throughout the year can contribute to deseasonalizationattracting alternative segments with greater flexibility to choose their travel dates. These include couples or single travelers, who currently represent 39% and 10% of demand respectively.
The robust air connectivity of AMT destinations, especially thanks to low-cost airlines and charters, is key to prolonging tourist seasons. As Mabrian’s analysis points out, “the fact of having a large volume of demand and the confidence of the airlines favors the possibility of extending flights beyond the peak season. It is much easier to extend a route than to create it from scratch: this factor is key to being able to receive alternative segments of international visitors,” says Cendra.
82.5% of the airline seats available in the last 12 months in the eight destinations of the Alliance of Sun and Beach Tourist Municipalities are operated by low-cost or charter airlines, which have increased by 11.6% compared to the same period of the previous year. In parallel, with respect to the rest of Spain, low-cost airlines and charters account for 67.6% of total airline seats.
The percentage of seats managed by traditional airlines to Spanish destinations (32.4%) is almost double that in the case of AMT municipalities (17.5%), which grew +8.6% compared to the previous year, 1.2 percentage points less than Spain.
Renewed experiences
28% of the hotels located in the eight destinations of the Alliance of Sun and Beach Tourist Municipalities are managed by hotel chains; 15% of them are through international hotel chains, almost double that in the rest of Spain.
“The higher this percentage of international hotel brands, the more possibilities there are of attracting alternative segmentsin the mid and low season, taking advantage of international marketing and promotion channels, key to facing one of the main challenges of some of the AMT destinations, improving their dependency rates on their markets of origin,” emphasizes Carlos Cendra.
The potential of the 5-star and luxury segment especially stands out. According to a recent report by McKinsey & Company, 63% of high-impact travelers choose trips to sun and beach destinations, but only 20% of the global hotel supply in these destinations corresponds to this high-end segment.
He experience tourismwith a growing prominence of blue tourism, represents a great opportunity to diversify the offer and increase spending at the destination. AMT destinations are working to combine the traditional sun and beach experience with other activities such as active tourism, gastronomy and culture.
Mabrian has identified Hurghada (Egypt), Agadir (Morocco), Crete (Greece), Zagreb (Croatia) and Bari (Italy) as the five main competitors of the Spanish sun and beach municipalities during the first half of 2025.
He has done it from a cross analysis between major airlines that connect the largest European source markets with these destinations and the increase in scheduled air capacity to alternative destinations, among which other coastal towns in Italy, Greece, Malta and Croatia stand out.
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