On Monday 28 April, the lights went out in Spain and Portugal. As a result of a massive power outage, millions of people were left without electricity, including thousands of tourists, costing the Spanish economy nearly €400 million.
The cause is still unknown, but the far-reaching impacts of the electrical failure highlighted the vulnerabilities in our infrastructure and the need to prepare the tourism sector to manage crises effectively.
Tourism at risk
Tourism is an important driver of economic growth, and plays a key role in stimulating economic activity, creating jobs, generating income and foreign exchange, promoting regional development, and supporting local communities. In 2023, for example, tourism in Spain accounted for 12.3% of the country’s total GDP.
However, as they may be unfamiliar with the local language, customs, and culture, tourists are also likely to be particularly vulnerable in the event of a crisis. For example, the recent blackout resulted in lost telephone and internet access.
With tourists often relying on electronic devices for navigation and communication, visitors were left disoriented and disconnected. Moreover, tourists are less likely than residents to have access to local emergency services or know where to find them, making it harder for them to get assistance during a blackout or similar event.
Visitors are also more likely to be vulnerable to safety risks, such as theft or accidents, as they are unfamiliar with the area and may not know how to protect themselves. Not to mention the risk of being stranded due to flight or train cancellations, with no certainty of where to spend the night.
Although the blackout resulted in some lost telephone and internet access, this did not last the whole day. People in Spain with access to Google predominantly searched for information about the blackout.
With climate change increasing the frequency and severity of extreme weather events, disruptions to tourism are becoming more common. For example, even more recently, several metro stations were forced to shut in Paris after flash floods caused by a violent hailstorm on Saturday 3 May, while further hailstorms and heavy rain partially derailed a train going from Paris to Toulouse on Monday 19 May. Tourism destinations need to be prepared to respond and adapt.
Be prepared…
Recent OECD work Building strong and resilient tourism destinations highlights what policy makers can do to build tourism stronger destinations that are better equipped to deal with unexpected crises.
- First, work to diversify economic activity. Many destinations are over-reliant on certain types of tourism, making the entire community vulnerable in the event of shocks. Tourism should be developed as part of a more diverse economic base, and the vision for tourism should be integrated into wider economic development policies. The village of Sankt Corona in Austria has sought to diversify its offering by investing in summer sports infrastructure, adding mountain biking trails and climbing facilities, after a decline in winter tourism.
- Second, strengthen governance structures. Systems need to be in place to ensure clear roles for different actors, and to co-ordinate policy approaches across national, regional, and local governments. For example, the Single Market Programme-backed “Crisis Management and Governance in Tourism” aimed to strengthen the EU tourism ecosystem resilience by improving its governance and mechanisms for resisting, managing, and mitigating future crises, supporting 55 beneficiaries from 21 countries through advice and the development of action plans.
- Third, build capacity in tourism institutions to support crisis management and help destinations navigate the green and digital transitions. For example, New Zealand developed Destination Management Guidelines highlighting the need to carry out destination risk assessments and pre-planning and practicing response strategies to crisis events.
- Fourth, leverage new technologies like big data, AI, and sensors to help monitor tourism flows, simulate disaster responses and design targeted, adaptive policies. The Fukui Prefecture Tourism Federation in Japan built an AI system that performs tailored region-specific analysis to support better tourism management.
Some countries are putting the elements together into comprehensive plans and strategies. Japan developed guidelines for managing tourism crises that consider important steps such as disaster mitigation measures, awareness and training for employees, preparation for disaster response, how to handle tourists during the disaster, and the recovery phase.
Greece has developed a Tourism Crisis Management Plan which identifies different potential types of crises (across environmental events, social and political events, economic shocks, health related issues, and system failures), and outlines concrete response mechanisms, roles, and processes.
Before the lights go out
The recent blackout serves as a reminder of the vulnerabilities in our infrastructure and the importance of preparation to enhance resilience and effective crisis management.
Tourism destinations need to learn from each other and develop plans to keep tourism on track well before the lights go out. By doing so, we can ensure tourism remains a source of strength rather than a weakness for communities in the years to come.
You can find out more about OECD’s work on tourism here. Given the importance and current relevance of this topic, the next OECD tourism flagship publication, Tourism Trends and Policies 2026, will include a chapter on preparing tourism for adaptation to extreme weather-related events.
Julie Reimann is an economist in the Tourism Policy and Analysis Unit at the OECD Centre for Entrepreneurship, SMEs, Regions and Cities. She is currently supporting the work of the Tourism Committee and co-ordinates EU-funded projects on measuring the economic impacts of tourism. Prior to joining the OECD, Julie worked on tourism in VisitDenmark and as an economic consultant in the private sector. She holds a MSc in Advanced Economics and Finance from Copenhagen Business School, Denmark, and a BA in Economics from University of Cambridge, United Kingdom.