Málaga, 1 de October de 2025. – Coinciding with the recent celebration of World Tourism Day (27 September), IUCN is shedding light on the urgent challenges and opportunities for coastal and maritime tourism in the Mediterranean. The new report Sustainable Blue Tourism in the Mediterranean: Trends, Challenges, and Policy Pathways underscores the vital economic importance of the coastal and maritime tourism sector in the region, while warning of mounting climate, environmental and social pressures that jeopardise its long-term viability. The publication was coordinated by the IUCN Centre for Mediterranean Cooperation (IUCN Med), with the support of the Andalusian Institute for Research and Innovation in Tourism (IATUR) through the University of Málaga (UMA), and the support of Eco-union and the Institute for Sustainable Development and International Relations (IDDRI).
Tourism is the backbone of the Mediterranean’s blue economy, worth €171 billion and providing most of the sector’s jobs. In 2024, the region welcomed nearly 360 million visitors, with numbers expected to soar to 635 million by 2025, even higher than before the pandemic. Yet the boom is uneven: Spain, France and Italy alone attract 64% of arrivals, showing a heavy concentration in just a few countries.
Unless policies change, tourist arrivals are projected to keep rising, further exacerbating environmental and social pressures across the region. The report stresses the need for governments, private operators and civil society to integrate biodiversity protection into tourism strategies, invest in low-impact models and align tourism development with the objectives of the EU Green Deal and global climate and biodiversity goals.
“This report shows both the risks of continuing with business-as-usual and the opportunities of embracing a new vision of tourism in the Mediterranean,” said Maher Mahjoub, Director of IUCN Med. “We must work together to ensure an urgent transition towards more sustainable tourism models that protect biodiversity, local livelihoods and cultural heritage in our Mediterranean region”.
The urgency for transformation
The new IUCN led report calls for a fundamental shift in Mediterranean tourism, from a growth-oriented paradigm to one that is regenerative, inclusive, and climate-resilient. It identifies seven concrete policy pathways to guide this transition, reshaping how destinations, businesses, and policymakers approach development, governance, and community engagement.
Key proposals include accelerating decarbonisation and resource efficiency and strengthening adaptive capacity to climate change. The report calls for replacing mass tourism with low-impact, locally rooted models such as ecotourism, pescatourism, and cultural tourism. The report also highlights the essential role of Marine Protected Areas(MPAs) in safeguarding ecosystems, boosting resilience and creating opportunities for low-impact tourism that benefits local communities.
Positive alternatives already exist and are showcased in the report, ranging from eco-tourism and cultural tourism to community-led initiatives that reduce pressure on fragile ecosystems and ensure that benefits are more fairly distributed among local populations. These approaches demonstrate that a different future for tourism in the Mediterranean is both possible and necessary.
This publication was produced by IUCN Med with the financial support of the French Facility for Global Environment (FFEM) through the Blue Tourism Initiative, with additional support from the Spanish Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge (MITECO), the Partnership France-IUCN, and Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation.
The publication:
Relevant data
• GDP Contribution: Tourism contributes 4.8% to the region’s cumulative GDP.
• International Tourist Arrivals (ITAs): The sector is recovering quickly. In 2024, the Mediterranean region recorded nearly 360 million ITAs in Southern Mediterranean Europe and North Africa alone. The entire region is expected to reach 635 million ITAs by 2025. (The expectation was 626 million ITAs by 2025 pre-pandemic).
• Geographical Concentration: Tourism flows remain highly uneven. The North-Western Mediterranean (Spain, France, and Italy) alone accounts for 64% of all ITAs.
• Dominant Sub-segments: Beach hotels and coastal resorts represent 20% of global hotel accommodation capacity. Cruise tourism is one of the most profitable and fastest-growing segments. Total cruise passenger movements in Mediterranean ports reached 32.9 million in 2023.
Critical Vulnerabilities and Environmental Pressures
• Climate Change Amplifier: The Mediterranean region is warming 20% faster than the global average.
• Coastal Assets at Risk: Rising sea levels and stronger storms threaten over €100 billion in tourism assets. Heatwaves are already pushing tourists toward cooler shoulder seasons.
• Water Scarcity: The Mediterranean holds just 3% of global freshwater reserves. Climate change is intensifying droughts. Water demand in the region is expected to double or triple by 2050. Intense tourist demand in summer months exacerbates scarcity, particularly on islands and in Southern Mediterranean countries.
• Land Degradation and Pollution: Uncontrolled development and infrastructure (hotels, marinas) lead to land occupation and soil degradation. High densities of tourist establishments are found along Italy’s western coast and the Adriatic coasts of Italy and Croatia.
• Marine Pressures and Biodiversity: Maritime traffic, including cruise ships and recreational boating, exerts heavy pressure on ecologically sensitive marine areas. Crucial habitats like the seagrass species Posidonia oceanica, which are critical for coastal protection, carbon sequestration, and as nurseries, are vulnerable to damage from anchoring and unregulated activities.
• Socio-Economic Strain: Mass tourism drives rising living costs, unaffordable housing, and seasonal, insecure jobs for local communities. In Spain, second homes account for over 14% of the national housing stock, and over 30% in some provinces.
The Blue Tourism Initiative (BTI) is a global multi-stakeholder innovation program focused on the environmental management, governance, and planning of coastal and maritime tourism in three marine regions: the Mediterranean, the Western Indian Ocean, and the Caribbean. The initiative is implemented by IDDRI and eco-union (lead partners), along with IUCN Med in the Mediterranean. Website - Blue Tourism Initiative