Spain, Italy, and Greece Suffer Drastic Tourism Collapse as Escalating Climate Crisis Triggers a Surging Shift to Cool, Safe Northern Europe Vacations

Wednesday, July 16, 2025

Southern Europe’s most iconic travel destinations — Spain, Italy, and Greece — are suffering a holiday season from hell with a sudden collapse in summer tourism as they increasingly bear the brunt of the global climate emergency that is transforming dream vacations into nightmares, according to a new report. As record heatwaves, wildfires, and beach erosion get out of control, these formerly idyllic vacation hot spots in the Mediterranean are some of the latest places that are starting to look less and less hospitable, and travelers are starting to abandon the sun in droves for something safer and cooler in other parts of North and Eastern Europe instead. Fluctuations in currency rates, or political instability, simply aren’t the big turnoff they once were, at a time when environmental disasters are increasingly severe and frequent, tourists are reimagining what a “perfect getaway” is and hitting “coolcations” that let them chill out in Scandinavia, the Baltics and Central Europe as climate change continues to rewrite the global tourism map.

Europe’s boundless, postcard-worthy vistas are changing as climate change rapidly erodes cherished travel destinations, prompting experts to weigh in on what travelers can do to ease the crisis. Formerly-idyllic Southern European destinations including Spain, Italy and Greece have seen their sun-drenched coastlines, historic cities and picturesque beaches become plagued by searing heat, uncontainable blazes and alarming coastal erosion. These effects are not just affecting how tourists decide where they want to take their vacations, however, but are also jeopardizing the very future of some of the world’s most important tourist economies.

For years, spring-fed pools lined the southern shores of Spain’s Andalusian coast, the craggy seascapes of Southern Italy and the picturesque Greek islands, wooing millions with the promise of sun and serenity. But in recent summers, these destinations have transformed from dream getaways into danger zones. Scorching temperatures exceeding 46 degrees Celsius have made these regions nearly intolerable in the height of the travel season.

Europe preparing to “completely” rewrite summer travel map amid rising climate concern, report by one of world’s biggest news agencies finds The outcome has been a striking change to tourism flows: away from the hotter climes of the Mediterranean resorts, travelers are opting for cooler and more temperate Northern and Eastern European locales.

It’s that this shift has increased so much over the past 10 or 20 years, as evidence from the European Travel Commission shows. More than 75 per cent of European travelers plan to change summer plans plea for climate action, according to a recent survey. ( read more ) More than one third of respondents are actively avoiding extreme weather areas, according to the poll. These choices are what travelers increasingly consider as important as cost or attractions while planning a trip, and these things you can plan for, because, for the most part, they don’t change.

The shake-up is of particular concern for many Southern European countries where the economy relies on tourism. Spain carries a particularly heavy burden here, with an estimated 12 percent of GDP coming from tourists (more than twice WORLDbuiling average). Italy and Greece also depend to a significant degree on the travel industry for their economies. As these countries toil under increased climate pressures, the financial impacts of dwindling tourist numbers have become more pressing.

Climate change is already doing real-time damage in Greece. Four years later, in the summer of 2023, a devastating wildfire on the Greek island of Rhodes led to the emergency evacuation of 19,000 people, including visitors. Such events have been increasingly common and severe, ruining vacations and putting immense pressure on emergency services and local infrastructure.

And the toll isn’t just in emergencies. Long-term environmental destruction is threatening the cornerstones of tourism where these areas are concerned. In early summer 2025, the El Granado region of Spain recorded a record high of forty-six degrees Celsius, prompting public health warnings. At the same time, Barcelona, a tourist gem for Spain, has lost 30,000 square meters of beach sand in the last five years due to higher sea levels and strong storms. The once popular Mongat beach now finds itself unable to accommodate visitors, hardly a space where you can lay down a towel. And part of the beach near Valencia is gone from the once-thriving Marina D’Or resort complex.

In addition to the evident loss of natural assets, heat-related deaths are on the rise throughout the continent. Over 47,000 people died in Europe from extreme heat in 2023 alone, according to the Barcelona Institute for Global Health. With experts expecting that such events will occur more frequently and hit harder, the knock-on effects for villagers and visitors are devastating.

Confronted by this coming emergency, Southern European governments and cities are experimenting with creative new ways to deal with the challenge. Barcelona, for one, is investing nearly €1.8 billion on enlarging green space and building climate shelters that offer relief during scorching heatwaves. The project is a piece of a broader strategy to reengineer urban landscapes to withstand powerful storms and attract visitors even as they become more extreme.

Greece has implemented a newly established “climate recovery levy” aimed at generating funds to support restoration efforts following severe environmental damage caused by climate-related disasters. Gleaned from visitors, the fee is meant to help defray the cost of firefighting, repairs to infrastructure and ecological rehabilitation.

And some Southern European countries are redirecting their tourism marketing to promote the “shoulder seasons” — spring and fall, when temperatures are more comfortable. The results of these campaigns have been positive. Tourist arrival figures to Greece in the spring of year 2024 for instance were up twenty percent over the year before. Spain, too, has reported a rise in early-year tourism, but January and February 2025 figures were very similar to those recorded for 2019.

While Southern Europe suffers the climate head on, a new set of countries has stepped into the spotlight. Interest throughout Northern Europe is spiking and — laughing in the face of the oft-predicted upending of travel by global warming — the hipster marketing crowd is collectively dubbing it “Coolcation.” The flip has been especially good news for the Nordics, whose balmy climes and verdant landscapes stand in stark contrast to the searing heat of the Mediterranean.

Bookings for tours of Scandinavian countries have spiked 40% compared with last year, a leading UK travel agency has reported. Experiences like hiking, kayaking, and eco-touring from Norway’s scenic fjords are particularly in demand. These nature-based trips are resonating with families and travelers on the hunt for climate-proof travel experiences.

Eastern Europe is becoming another strong contender. Countries such as Poland, the Czech Republic, Romania and Bulgaria are rising in popularity for providing countries with cooler climates and offering cheaper travel than their northern neighbors. These options are now seen as economically viable and… environmentally safer alternatives.

The entire industry must adjust quickly in order to survive as the forces driving global travel change, experts say. The solution is not only to minimize the impacts of climate change, but to prepare a model of tourism that is more resilient, sustainable and geographically diversified.

Academic perspectives reinforce this urgency. A leading tourism scientist at a Dutch university has said that unless Southern Europe experiences a significant reduction in heatwaves and wildfires in the next few years, then attitudes towards Mediterranean holidays could be fundamentally altered for years to come. What used to be an annual getaway to sun-drenched beaches may take on the connotations of risk and discomfort.

This shift isn’t just theoretical — already, it is felt in booking patterns, tourist sentiment, and national policy changes. The world’s governments, travel businesses and international organizations are now starting to wrestle with the tough questions: How can iconic places to visit like Santorini, Seville or Sicily keep their appeal in a climate-stressed world? What kind of infrastructure is needed to make tourism safer and more sustainable? And are new regions able to make a go of receiving this shift in summer tourism from where tourists traditionally went before amid the pandemic?

One of the solutions is promoting sustainable tourism in general. This schedule includes planning for renewable energy, conservation of coastal wetlands, promoting low impact travel experiences and developing campaigns that promote longer off-season stays. Tourists are also becoming more conscious and selective – more and more are choosing locations consistent with their environmental beliefs.

The change now taking place in European tourism is not merely a reaction to climate change — it’s a window into the future of travel the world over. With communities already grappling with rising seas and record temperatures and erratic wildfires, tourism must reimagine it’s very basis.

Tourism is evaporating in Spain, Italy and Greece even though the scorching heatwaves, wildfires and erosion by threatening waves will not be unleashed at full strength until the second half of the century, upon the children and grandchildren of Europeans and other travelers who have redirected their holidays elsewhere to avoid the inferno. And fueled by the growing climate crisis, increasing numbers of travelers are now moving in their droves towards cooler and safer destinations in Northern and Eastern Europe, rewriting some of the old rules about holidaymaking across the continent.

If Southern Europe is going to continue to be a relevant and attractive destination in the decades ahead, governments, businesses and consumers will need to adjust their strategies for this new era. Through adaptation, innovation and a conservation commitment, the region can still reclaim its rightful place as one of the key destinations for global tourism— not by holding back the tide, but by guiding the flow.