ITB Berlin 2026: Greece Holds Top 3 Spot as German Travel Spending Hits Record €87.9bn

• 11 March, 26

Greece remains one of the three most popular summer destinations for German travelers as overall travel spending from Germany reached a new record high of 87.9 billion euros in 2025, according to the German Travel Association (DRV).

Presenting the figures at the opening press conference of ITB Berlin 2026 on Monday, DRV President Albin Loidl underlined the resilience of German travel demand despite geopolitical tensions.

“In light of the current escalation in the Middle East, we are following the situation in the affected regions with attention and great concern,” Loidl said. “For our industry, the safety of travelers and our partners on the ground has always been our top priority. These developments show us once again how closely interconnected — and how fragile — our world is.”

Greece among top summer destinations for 2026

Looking ahead to summer 2026, Türkiye currently ranks as the most popular destination for travel between May and October, followed by Spain and Greece. Tour operator sales for Greece are up 8 percent compared to last year, reflecting continued strong demand for Eastern Mediterranean destinations.

Overall summer bookings show revenue growth of 7 percent and a 4 percent increase in guests compared to the previous year, based on Travel Data + Analytics (TDA) figures for bookings made through travel agencies and tour operator portals by the end of January.

Mediterranean destinations continue to dominate, with Türkiye up 12 percent and Spain up 5 percent. Egypt and Italy are recording above-average growth of 18 percent and 17 percent respectively.

The data also confirms a strong shift toward organized travel. Package holidays including flights are up 14 percent in revenue, with 12 percent more guests year-on-year.

“The latest figures confirm a clear trend: especially in uncertain times, Germans prioritize reliability and security when planning their holidays,” Loidl said. “Package holidays are and will remain a successful model.”

Cruises are also contributing to growth, with summer revenue rising 10 percent compared to last year.

Record 2025 travel spending

For the full 2025 travel year, Germans spent 87.9 billion euros on pre-booked multi-day holidays — more than 5 percent above the previous year and almost 20 billion euros higher than before the pandemic.

“Travel remains a basic human need — even in economically and geopolitically uncertain times,” Loidl said. “The consistently high volume of travel shows that vacations continue to be a high priority.”

While the number of travelers remained stable at a high level, the number of trips declined by just under 1 percent. Organized travel performed particularly well, growing 9.3 percent to 43.4 billion euros and now accounting for roughly half of total revenue. In contrast, individually organized holidays declined by 5 percent abroad and 3 percent domestically, with an 8 percent drop during the summer season.

Cruises and long-haul shifts

Cruises remained a growth driver in 2025, generating 6.7 billion euros in revenue, an increase of 8 percent year-on-year.

At the same time, long-haul travel is showing mixed signals for summer 2026. While destinations such as the Maldives and Mauritius are posting revenue growth of 27 percent, bookings to the United States have declined by double-digit percentages, pushing the country down to 14th place in the destination ranking.

Despite this, Loidl stressed that the United States “remains the most booked long-haul destination for the summer in terms of absolute tourist numbers.”

Overall, the DRV data signals a resilient German outbound market — with Greece firmly positioned among its top-performing destinations heading into summer 2026.

Cre: Greek Travel Pages