Foreign Markets Drive Portugal's Tourism Sector to €2 Billion in Q2 2025
The National Statistics Institute (INE) has reported that Portugal's tourist accommodation sector registered 9.2 million guests and 23 million overnight stays during the second quarter of 2025, marking year-on-year increases of 4.4% and 4.2%, respectively. This activity generated total revenues of €2 billion, a significant 9.4% rise compared to the same period in the previous year, with revenues from accommodation services alone reaching €1.6 billion, up 9.8%.
The data, released this Monday, indicates a continued positive trajectory for the national tourism industry, a vital component of the Portuguese economy. The growth in overnight stays was distributed across all primary accommodation segments. Hotels, which account for the vast majority of the market at 81.2%, experienced a 4% increase. The local accommodation sector, known as 'Alojamento Local', which represents 14.9% of the total, saw a 3% rise. The segment of tourism in rural and residential spaces recorded the most substantial relative growth, at 13.1%.
An analysis of the geographic distribution shows the Algarve as the leading region, concentrating 27.1% of total overnight stays. The Greater Lisbon area followed, accounting for 23.4% of the total, with the North region capturing 17.8%. The concentration of non-resident stays was most pronounced in the Algarve, which received 30.5% of all foreign visitors' overnight stays, while the North was the preferred destination for domestic tourists, with 21.7% of resident stays.
Foreign markets remain the dominant force in the sector, responsible for 16.7 million overnight stays, or 72.3% of the total, reflecting a 2.9% increase. In contrast, overnight stays by residents grew more sharply, rising by 7.6% to a total of 6.4 million. The INE noted a slight decrease in the dependency on foreign markets, with their share falling by 0.9 percentage points year-on-year, marking the third consecutive quarter of such a decline.
Greater Lisbon recorded the highest dependency on international visitors, with 82.9% of its overnight stays attributed to non-residents. The Autonomous Region of Madeira and the Algarve also showed high levels of foreign dependency, at 82.4% and 81.4%, respectively.
The United Kingdom maintained its position as the primary source market, accounting for 19.3% of all non-resident overnight stays, with a growth of 1.9%. Germany was the second-largest market, with an 11.3% share and a 2.1% increase in stays. The market from the United States of America demonstrated robust growth of 5.9%, reaching a 10.4% share of the total. The US was the principal market in Greater Lisbon, with an 18.3% share of non-resident stays in the region.
Among the top ten source markets, Spain registered the highest growth rate at 9.2%, while the French market experienced the most significant decline, with a 9.3% reduction in overnight stays compared to the second quarter of 2024.
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