Tourism has a huge impact on several elements, such as tourists, residents, workers, and governments. These facts affect people’s well-being and social behavior; it also contributes to economic growth, employment generation, and infrastructure construction ([29]).

Social behavior in the post-COVID-19 world of tourism changed measurable patterns in how people choose, plan, and experience travel—such as destinations, duration, means of transport, expenditures, and activities—captured through quantitative indicators that reflect changes in preferences, risk perceptions, mobility restrictions, and institutional policies after COVID-19 ([9]; [24]). Tourism experienced a shift toward a higher domestic share and lower short-term international arrivals. Border restrictions, along with the fact that domestic tourism recovered faster than cross-border tourism, suggest that people are choosing to travel locally rather than over long distances ([10]).

During the COVID-19 pandemic, travel restrictions and regulations were implemented, which led to a decrease in tourism industry demand in 2020 ([2]; [21]). All segments of society were affected by the effects of COVID-19, including education, commerce, transport, leisure, among others ([3]; [11]). Countries closed borders, national mobility was restricted, and this phenomenon had a huge economic impact on all countries ([14]; [17]), and also changed the routine and way of living in the majority of societal activities: Urban Behaviour ([16]; [7]; [23]), Education ([4]; [36]; [15]), Work ([18]), Healthcare ([8]), among others. But probably tourism is the activity that experienced the most from this; if there is no travel, there is no tourism. All components of tourism had to adapt to a new normal to permit its return. This resilience was double-sided; both the tourist and the tourism industry had to change ([11]; [22]).

Tourism adopted many measures and adapted to a new world with changes in:

Police measures have been implemented, accompanied by more frequent coordination with health authorities, the use of travel corridors, the rapid closure and reopening of borders, and the implementation of testing and quarantine regulations ([9]).

The aviation sector implemented rapid capacity reductions followed by cautious, demand-driven capacity restoration, along with network simplification, reduced flight frequencies, and a greater focus on profitable routes and cargo operations ([25]; [12]).

Pricing has been dynamic, with more consumer-friendly fare policies (flexible fares, waivers), short-term price promotions to stimulate demand, and segmented pricing favoring domestic and leisure markets ([25]).

Accommodation providers (hotels, short-term rentals) enhanced cleaning protocols, implemented contactless check-in/out, reconfigured common spaces, and adopted health-safety certifications ([9]; [13]).

Health-risk perceptions emerged as a primary determinant of travel behavior; transparent and timely health information, coupled with visible safety measures, became key competitive advantages. Trust in service providers and authorities significantly influenced both booking decisions and destination selection ([20]; [11]).

The return was in force in 2023 and in the following years. Disasters like the Ukraine and Gaza wars, extreme hot and cold temperatures, and the heavy rains and floods in recent years do not prevent the great numbers of tourists and hotel occupations from reaching figures near to, and in some cases even above, those pre-COVID-19 all over the world. In this work, we study tourism in Portugal, making a comparison before, during, and after COVID-19. We also state a question to be answered in the work: Which tourism indicators recovered fastest in Portugal post-COVID, and how does this compare with Europe?

We use the data provided by the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) ([31]), European Union Tourism ([5]), United Nations Economic Commission for Europe ([27]), and Turismo de Portugal ([26]). All datasets were extracted in January 2026; the focus is on Portugal and European countries in which tourism has an important socio-economic role. The classification of the Tourism Statistics Database ([31]) by the UNWTO includes the following indicators: 1) Inbound Tourism, 2) Domestic Tourism, 3) Outbound Tourism, 4) Tourism Industries, 5) Employment, and 6) Macroeconomic Indicators. This follows the International Recommendations for Tourism Statistics (IRTS 2008) ([28]). In this work, we develop topics 1, 5, and 6, summarizing indicators such as tourism direct GDP share, arrivals/guests, receipts, employment, and overnight stays.

Tourism has great importance in society and the economies of most countries, and it is responsible for a significant part of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in some of them. In Europe, in some countries like Italy, Croatia, Greece, and Portugal, tourism contributes more than 10% to the GDP, and the jobs in the direct and indirect tourism-related industries and activities comprise more than 5% of the global number.

Figure 1. Tourism direct GDP as a proportion of total GDP (%): Last available year.

Table 1. Tourism direct GDP as a proportion of total GDP (%) (2012-2023).

In Table 1, we can observe the tourism data in the economy of some countries in the European Community [EC27] from 2012 to 2023 ([30]), and in Figure 1, we have the latest available year of the Tourism Direct GDP (TDGDP). Tourism Direct GDP (TDGDP) is defined as the sum of the gross value added (at basic prices) generated by all industries in response to internal tourism consumption, plus the amount of net taxes on products and imports included within the value of this expenditure at purchasers’ prices (UNECE [27]).

Tourism has great importance in employment all over Europe. Besides, many of the jobs are temporary due to season dependence, and this has a very positive influence on the economy. In Table 2 and Figure 2, there are the indices in % of direct tourist employment related to the total national employment ([5]).

Table 2. Tourism direct employment as a proportion of total employment (%) (2023).

Figure 2. Tourism indirect employment as a proportion of total employment (%) (2023).

Since 2003, the journal World Tourism Barometer UNWTO has been published periodically by UNWTO ([32]). There are no fixed months nor a fixed number of annual issues, but in general, there are 6 issues per year, and the months follow the relevant tourism numbers news. The main tourism growth measure is the International Tourists Arrivals (ITA) or overnight stays. The growth is measured by the percentage change at the annual rate, that is, a comparison with the previous year. The WTO annual publication, International Tourism Highlights ([33]), also contains a complete account and comparisons of the relevant world tourism data.

Two years before COVID-19, the world was in an ascending economic situation, and tourism reflected this. 2017 was the strongest year since 2010, with a worldwide ITA of 1.32 billion, representing an annual increase of 7%. This situation continued in 2018 with 1.4 billion ITA, an annual increase of 6%, a number above the forecast of 4 to 5% at the beginning of the year. 2019 was also a good year for tourism; the increase of 4% matched the forecast. The great change came in 2020. In January, the forecast pointed to a growth also of 4%, but in the first months, with the spread of COVID-19, the world shut down, and at the end of the year, the fall was 74%. This decline represents fewer than 900 million international arrivals compared with 2019. The tourism analysts agreed that the recovery could last some years. The year 2021 was still very weak, with a global increase of 8%. In Europe, this number was a bit better, with 19%. The year 2022 showed a recovery with a growth of 225% compared to 2021. The last three years have been very good for tourism, with increases of 35%, 11%, and 4%, with a total of 1523 million ITA. In some EU countries, like in Portugal, ITA are still better, including above the pre-pandemic levels. In Table 3 and in Figures 3-5, we have an account of those numbers ([35]). In Figure 3, Figure 4 we observed that the increase in tourism numbers in Europe is lower than that of the entire world. This is likely due to several issues, such as wars and weather disasters. In Figure 3, we observe that the situation in Portugal is different, with numbers exceeding those of Europe.

Table 3. International tourist arrivals (ITA) (million), receipts per arrival (USD billion) for the World, Europe, and Portugal.

Figure 3. International tourist arrivals (ITA) (millions) compared with tourist arrivals (ITA) in Europe (millions) (2017-2025).

Figure 4. International tourist arrivals receipts (billions) compared with tourist receipts Europe (billions) (2017-2025).

Figure 5. International tourist arrivals (Growth ITA) (%) compared with Growth ITA (EU) and Growth ITA (PT) (2017-2025).

In Table 4 and Figure 6. We have a normalized core metric (ITA/population) showing that this number is one of the highest among peer destinations, beyond absolute growth rates ([6]).

Table 4. ITA (million), Population (million), and ITA/Population (2025).

Figure 6. ITA/Population (2025).

In the last decades, Portugal made great investments in its infrastructures, like roads, airports, and urban transports. This brought the modernization of the accommodation network, like hotels, lodges, and hostels. These facts led to the creation of a strong tourism industry which now accounts for more than 5% of the GDP.

The data in the following tables and figures are available in the database of Tourism of Portugal ([26]). We use the classification: 1) Guests, the total number of tourist arrivals, national and international (or ITA); 2) Value added, representing the money earned by all accommodation establishments; 3) Overnight stays, counting the night’s stay for a single tourist.

In Table 5 and Figure 7, we have the ratio in % tourism direct GDP as a proportion of total GDP. We observe the growth from 2010 to 2023; Portugal follows the international trend. In the recession years of 2020 and 2021, this proportion drops, and in the following years, we can observe a recovery.

Table 5. Tourism direct GDP as a proportion of total GDP in Portugal (%) (2014-2023).

Figure 7. Tourism direct GDP as a proportion of total GDP in Portugal (%) (2014-2023).

In Table 6 and Figure 8, significant growth can be observed for national and international (ITA).

Table 6. Guests in Portugal (millions) (2014-2025).

Figure 8. Guests in Portugal (2014-2025).

In Table 7 and Figure 9, we have the Value added by tourism, accounting for those overnight stays in accommodation establishments and other issues. It can also be observed that there was a great increase after 2022.

Table 7. Value added in Portugal (millions) (2014-2025).

Figure 9. Value added in Portugal (millions) (2014-2025).

Table 8 and Figure 10 show the Overnight stays; despite the relative growth diminishing, the increase in total growth is very significant. We observe that the ratio of the total between 2025 and previous years follows the same tendency of growth as those of Table 6 and Figure 8 describing the tourist Guests, which agrees with the development of tourism in recent years.

Table 8. Overnight stays in Portugal (millions) (2014-2025).

Figure 10. Overnight stays in Portugal (millions) (2014-2025).

In Table 9, we present the guest numbers according to the origin countries, and in Figure 11, the respective total numbers for 2020, 2021, 2024, and 2025.

Table 9. Overnight stays in Portugal (millions) (2014-2025) by country.

Figure 11. Overnight stays in Portugal (2020-2025) by country.

In Table 10, Figure 12, and Figure 13, we have the overnight stays in Portugal (millions) by month from 2014 to 2025, where it can be observed that summer is the greatest season for tourism.

Table 10. Overnight stays in Portugal (millions) (2014-2025) by month.

Figure 12. Overnight stays in Portugal (millions) (2014-2025) by month.

Figure 13. Overnight stays in Portugal (millions) (2014-2025) by month.

In Table 11 and Figure 14, we have Tourism Direct GDP relating to the total GDP.

Table 11. Tourism direct GDP as a proportion of total GDP (%) in Portugal (2015-2024).

Figure 14. Overnight stays in Portugal (millions) (2014-2025) by month.

In Table 12 and Figure 15, we have the top 10 countries (in %) responsible for Tourism Direct GDP.

Table 12. Tourism direct GDP (in %), top 10 (2015-2024).

Figure 15. Tourism direct GDP (in %), top 10 (2015-2024).

In the year 2020, tourism had a great drawback due to COVID-19; this led to a huge change in behavior which affected almost all segments of society ([1]). Several measures have been adopted in transport, commerce, and accommodation installations. Things started to recover after 2022, in a new reality ([19]). In this work, we make an account of the tourism situation in Europe and in Portugal, highlighting the recovery in recent years. For the presented statistics, we use data from the World Tourism Organization, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, and Turismo de Portugal. We made several comparisons showing the significant change after 2022.

We face some limitations in addressing comparability across sources (UNWTO vs. national statistics), definitional differences (e.g., “ITA” vs. “guests,” “receipts” vs. “value added”), and missing values or breaks in series, but these did not affect the interpretation.

The answer to the question stated in the Introduction can be found in Table 4 and Figure 6, where we observe the outstanding position of Portuguese tourism among European countries.