Portugal’s tourism industry continues to grow at pace – underlining its vital role in the nation’s economy.
According to the latest figures published by the country’s National Statistics Institute (INE), in the first nine months of 2025, there was a 3% increase in guests staying within tourism accommodation. That’s up to 25.3 million.
In addition, there were 65 million overnight stays, up 2.2%. Together, they generated €5.7 billion in total revenue.
There was also a rise in overnight stays by Portuguese residents – rising 5.8% to 19.9 million.
Figures for the third quarter of 2025 – which included the key vacation months - revealed Grande Lisboa, the urban region surrounding the capital Lisbon, depended the most on foreign markets for overnight stays, with 83.2% of the total.
It was followed by Madeira (79.5%) and the Azores (76.6%).
In terms of the most popular destinations during that quarter, the Algarve continued to head the field, followed by Lisbon and the Norte region – which includes the likes of Porto and Braga.
Paul Stannard, founder and chairman of Portugal Pathways, said: “Portugal’s popularity with tourists continues to show little signs of slowing. Its culture, history, coastline, countryside and weather are all an enticing mix.
“The billions of euros it generates demonstrates what a vital part of the economy tourism remains.
"It creates jobs, fuels infrastructure improvements and, of course, it is so often that investors and entrepreneurs fall under its spell while visiting which leads to further investment going forward.”
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