Tourism is on the rise, driven by a growing desire to explore all the world has to offer. Tourists want to see more, do more and move on quickly. For many destinations, that brings welcome income, but it also creates pressure. Rapid growth in visitor numbers can strain local infrastructure, add to environmental pressures and erode the authenticity of destinations. To manage visitor flows, plan sustainably, and respond effectively to emerging challenges, decisionmakers need more timely and accurate tourism data. Slovenia is showing what this can look like in practice.
Don’t look back in anger
By the time traditional tourism figures are published, the busiest days have typically long passed – and with them the opportunity to proactively address issues around public safety, the environment and community life. This became especially evident during the pandemic, when decisions had to be made in unprecedented situations.
As Slovenia’s tourism sector sets new records, the country has invested in data-driven tools that provide daily data on arrivals and overnight stays, allowing destinations to make faster and smarter decisions. These tools help authorities monitor visitor flows, identify pressure points, support local communities and plan better for transport, waste and energy use. This is not just about efficiency – it is about resilience. In an era of climate uncertainty, geopolitical instability and shifting travel patterns, agility is key.
Building the system behind the data
Slovenia’s progress is built on n strong foundations. Its real-time tourism data are supported by two key tools: the Register of Accommodation Establishments and the eTurizem electronic reporting system. Together, they provide an up-to-date picture of accommodation providers and a steady flow of information on guest arrivals, departures and country of origin.
But high-quality data do not appear by magic. They depend on reliable systems, strong digital infrastructure and people with the right skills. Tools such as Power BI and SAS help process, analyse and present information quickly and securely. Just as important are the staff who manage these systems and turn raw information into something useful for decision-makers.
Slovenia’s tourism dashboard in action
In 2025, the Slovenian Tourist Board launched the National Intelligence System for Tourism (NiST). The platform brings together a wide range of tourism data and makes them available to various stakeholders – businesses, accommodation providers, municipalities and national agencies. It enables the monitoring of environmental, social and economic goals from regional and national tourism strategies. Its purpose is not only to monitor tourism trends, but to support more sustainable development and inform policy and business decisions.
One of the key tools within NiST is Tourism Daily, a publicly accessible interactive platform developed by the Statistical Office of the Republic of Slovenia (SURS). It provides near real-time daily data on tourist arrivals and overnight stays. It can be broken down by country of origin, region, municipality and type of accommodation.
Tourism daily is more than a dashboard. It is a practical management tool. It allows users to quickly identify changes in visitor flows, understand where demand is rising and use that knowledge to adapt services, marketing and planning. It also gives businesses, researchers and the public access to timely information, widening the use of evidence in tourism policy.
What this means on the ground
The value of timely data becomes clearest when we look at how they are used.
At national level, the Slovenian Tourist Board uses real-time data to track tourism performance across the country, analyse seasonality and monitor how demand is spread across regions. This helps it assess progress against the aims of the Slovenian Tourism Strategy, including goals linked to sustainability, visitor dispersal and value creation. Instead of relying only on retrospective reporting, national policymakers can take a more proactive approach to steering tourism development.
At the destination level, Kranjska Gora shows how daily data can support practical decisions. As one of Slovenia’s best-known tourist destinations, it uses daily figures on arrivals and overnight stays to adjust its offer to demand, identify peak and quieter days, and assess the effects of major sporting events and festivals. As a result, local actors are better able to manage pressure and capacity, and improve visitor experience without losing sight of local quality of life.
This is where the local and regional value of timely data becomes most visible. Better information can help places manage tourism not only for visitors, but for residents too.
Looking ahead
The benefits of timely tourism data do not stop at monitoring current flows. When combined with longer time series and other sources, such as weather, transport or event data, they can also support forecasting of visitor behaviour. This allows destinations to anticipate pressure points and proactively adjust services and infrastructure.
New technologies could push this even further. Mobile data, sensors, smart meters and other digital tools can add to the picture of how destinations function. Used carefully and responsibly, these sources could help create a fuller understanding of visitor patterns and their effects on places.
Data as infrastructure for better tourism
As tourism grows, popular destinations cannot afford to manage today’s pressures with yesterday’s data. Timely, trusted and accessible information is becoming a necessity for good tourism governance. It can help spread the benefits of tourism more evenly, protect fragile places, improve planning and support a better balance between economic benefits and local wellbeing.
Slovenia’s experience shows that when the right systems are in place, data can do much more than describe tourism after the fact. They can help shape it in real time, and, when used responsibly, support more sustainable development.
A new OECD Tourism Trends dashboard, provides an opportunity for users to compare tourism indicators in OECD countries and beyond. This comparative analysis can support the understanding of different tourism trends and can help policy makers tailor strategies.
The dashboard displays comparable data on key economic indicators, receipts and expenditure, flows, employment, enterprises and consumption in the tourism sector for over 50 countries. It shows the evolution of these indicators over time and provides the opportunity to compare international tourism flows between countries. You can find more details in the Tourism Trends and Policies publications and the OECD Tourism Statistics Database.
Teja Zupančič holds a bachelor's degree in communication studies and has over a decade of experience in marketing. Since 2019, she has been leading the monthly survey on tourist arrivals and overnight stays at the Statistical Office of the Republic of Slovenia. Her work bridges traditional statistics and digital innovation — she also oversees experimental statistics on short-term rentals based on online booking platforms and is the driving force behind “Tourism daily”, Slovenia’s real-time tourism data product. She is passionate about making tourism data more timely, accessible, and actionable for everyone from policymakers and decision-makers to destination managers and researchers.