Addressing Spain’s Tourism Challenges Through Innovation
Spain’s tourism sector is at a pivotal moment. In 2025, the country welcomed a staggering 96.8 million international visitors, solidifying its status as one of the world’s premier travel destinations. However, this success has not come without its challenges. The concentration of tourists in certain hotspots has led to increased pressure on local communities and infrastructure, particularly during peak seasons. With around 80% of global travelers visiting just 10% of destinations, Spain faces significant issues such as rising housing costs, strained public services, and growing local frustration.
The Impact of Climate Change and Digital Lag
Compounding these challenges is the impact of climate change. Rising temperatures, water scarcity, and waste management issues are becoming increasingly pressing concerns for the tourism industry. Additionally, many businesses have been slow to adopt digital technologies that could enhance their competitiveness and sustainability. Yet, amidst these challenges lie opportunities. Emerging technologies—ranging from data analytics to AI-driven tools—offer innovative solutions to distribute visitor flows more evenly, promote lesser-known destinations, and diversify tourism offerings.
Introducing TUI Futureshapers Spain
In response to this complex landscape, the TUI Care Foundation, in collaboration with development agency Target 8.9 and Wayra Telefonica, has launched TUI Futureshapers Spain. This two-year acceleration program aims to empower young entrepreneurs and startups to create green and digital solutions tailored for the tourism sector. By fostering collaboration among universities, innovation centers, and tourism businesses, the initiative seeks to transform Spain’s tourism innovation ecosystem into a sustainable driver of long-term prosperity.
Three Pathways to Innovation
The TUI Futureshapers Spain program operates through three complementary pathways designed to support innovation from initial concept to market-ready solutions.
Ignite Path
The Ignite Path is tailored for young entrepreneurs at the earliest stages of development. This pathway helps participants transition from concept to prototype, focusing on addressing specific tourism challenges such as overtourism and climate resilience. Collaborating with local universities and innovation hubs, the program will engage 100 young participants through six practical training modules aimed at enhancing their digital skills. The culmination of this path is a two-day tourism hackathon, where around 50 young entrepreneurs will work intensively with mentors to develop minimum viable products, with an expectation of producing at least eight prototypes.
Grow Path
The Grow Path is designed for early-stage startups that have already established product-market fit. This phase provides personalized advisory support to at least nine startups, helping them refine their business models with a focus on environmental sustainability and digital innovation. Networking activities and market-linkage events will connect these ventures with potential partners, clients, and investors within the tourism ecosystem. A final demo day will allow participants to pitch their solutions to key stakeholders, with five startups gaining access to a curated network for solution validation and three finalists advancing to the Scale Path.
Scale Path
The Scale Path focuses on technology adoption, piloting, and investment readiness for the most mature ventures. TUI Futureshapers Spain will facilitate partnerships with tourism stakeholders willing to pilot innovative solutions, enabling real-world testing in various destinations and businesses. Each of the three selected startups will receive tailored technical assistance to enhance their investment readiness, including customized roadmaps for scaling their solutions. By the program’s conclusion, at least one startup is expected to be well-positioned to access venture capital or other investment mechanisms, paving the way for full implementation of their solutions.
Supporting the Next Generation of Innovators
Overall, TUI Futureshapers Spain aims to directly support 200 individuals through technical assistance, create or maintain 25 jobs, and organize 15 collaborative events that foster innovation across Spain’s tourism ecosystem. By nurturing ideas at every stage—from early concepts to scalable solutions—the initiative promotes a tourism model that leverages digital tools and green innovation to alleviate pressure on destinations, bolster local economies, and enhance resilience.
A Global Initiative
This project is part of the broader TUI Futureshapers Programme, which empowers passionate individuals in tourism destinations worldwide to transform social and environmental challenges into entrepreneurial opportunities. The program operates in various countries, including Cape Verde, Jamaica, Morocco, Namibia, Greece, Tunisia, Egypt, Albania, Portugal, Sweden, the UK, Colombia, Zanzibar, the Dominican Republic, and Laos, showcasing a global commitment to sustainable tourism development.
