Spending by domestic visitors will grow 1.9% to around 2.09 trillion dollars, while spending by international visitors will fall 2%. That divergence is the main warning sign in the report. Domestic tourism is holding up activity, but the traveller arriving from abroad spends less, in line with data from other markets showing weaker long-distance travel and a greater weight for nearby trips.
Mexico featured prominently in the presentation. With leisure tourism spending of 237.6 billion dollars, it ranks as the fourth-largest market in the world in that category. In addition, Americans are expected to make about 150 million trips abroad in 2026, with Mexico as their first international destination. The choice of Guadalajara as host was no accident, as it reinforces the country's position as a gateway for North American demand into the rest of the region.
Air connectivity emerged as one of the great challenges. Latin America and the Caribbean have about 2,020 international airport-to-airport routes, compared with 9,530 in Western Europe, and only 63% of international passengers in the region fly directly to their destination. Reliance on connections raises prices, lengthens journeys and limits the competitiveness of destinations, especially smaller ones or those far from the big hubs.
Guevara argued that the event is an opportunity to build a legacy for the industry and reminded the audience that tourism accounts for almost 10% of global gross domestic product. Also present were Mexico's Tourism Secretary Josefina RodrĂguez Zamora, Jalisco Governor Pablo Lemus and the state's Tourism Secretary Michelle Fridman, along with Messe Berlin executives, underlining institutional backing for the new event.
The contrast between growth in the total contribution and the fall in international spending raises an uncomfortable question: if tourism gains weight in the economy but foreign visitors spend less, the sector's profitability depends more and more on the domestic market and on attracting higher-value segments. That is why luxury, cultural, shopping and community-based tourism are gaining relevance in the strategies of American destinations.
It also remains to be shown that a new fair can generate lasting business in a calendar already crowded with professional gatherings. Its success will depend on the quality of buyers, on follow-up after the first contacts and on governments turning announcements into investment in infrastructure, training and coordinated promotion.
For tourism businesses, the practical consequences are immediate. Hotels, airlines and tour operators in the Americas will need to rely on domestic and regional demand while working to win back the long-haul visitor, through more direct routes, simpler entry procedures and products that justify a longer and more expensive journey. Public-private cooperation, which the Council promotes through events of this kind, will be decisive in aligning promotion budgets, airline capacity and local services.
In sum, the Guadalajara meeting offers a nuanced portrait of tourism in the continent: a sector that weighs almost a tenth of its economy and supports more than fifty million jobs, yet faces a lower-spending international visitor and insufficient connectivity. Solving both issues will be key to turning projections into real growth over the coming years.
