Portugal could see a 6% reduction in the number of British holidaymakers visiting the country in 2021 (from 2.4 million to 2.3 million) if there is a ‘hard Brexit’ – a scenario in which the UK leaves not only the EU but also the single market and the customs union.
The prediction is part of a report by the European Travel Commission (ETC), which also suggests that the total number of foreigners travelling to Portugal could also drop by 0.6%.
National news agency Lusa points out that it is a less worrying percentage compared to neighbouring country Spain, where the decrease of foreign holidaymakers could reach 7%.
“Spain is the most affected country in terms of number of travellers, while Iceland has the biggest loss in percentage terms,” says the ETC reports.
It adds that the number of foreigners visiting Portugal between January and July 2019 increased 8.3% compared to the same period in 2018.
The report also highlights the country’s growing success among American holidaymakers, along with Sweden and Norway, while Spain is described as the country that grew the least in terms of welcoming more foreign visitors.
At the top of the list were Montenegro (+18.1%), Turkey (+14.7%), Luxembourg (+10.1%), Lithuania (+9.3%) and Slovakia (+ 9%).
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