Tourism Seasonality Summit 2027 Will Unite Industry Leaders in Antalya to Build the Future of Year-Round Tourism

Travel and tourism leaders from across Europe and beyond will gather in Antalya, Türkiye, to tackle one of the industry's most persistent challenges: creating sustainable, profitable visitor economies that extend beyond the traditional peak season.

According to Eurostat, 31.1% of all overnight stays in EU tourist accommodation during 2025 took place in just two months, July and August. These figures highlight the scale of the seasonality challenge and the growing need for coordinated action across destinations, airlines, airports, hospitality providers, cruise operators and policymakers. 

Now in its fourth year, the Tourism Seasonality Summit, held in partnership between Routes and Low Season Traveller, has established itself as the leading forum dedicated to addressing tourism seasonality through practical collaboration and actionable solutions. The 2027 event will take place from 21-23 April 2027 at the NEST Congress & Exhibition Center in Antalya, Türkiye. 

As travel and tourism continue to support one in every ten jobs globally and nearly 10% of world GDP, the industry faces increasing pressure to balance economic growth with resident wellbeing, infrastructure capacity and long-term destination sustainability. Managing overtourism requires collaborative, evidence-based action, with no single organisation or sector capable of solving the issue alone. 

While many destinations have introduced visitor caps and tourism taxes, WTTC research suggests that such measures often fail to address the root causes of overcrowding and may risk reducing tourism's positive economic contribution. The organisation estimates that restricting tourism growth across 11 major European cities could put up to US$245 billion in GDP and nearly three million jobs at risk over a three-year period. 

Against this backdrop, the Tourism Seasonality Summit 2027 will bring together senior decision-makers from across the travel ecosystem to examine how destinations can build stronger year-round demand, create more resilient tourism economies and distribute the benefits of tourism more evenly throughout the calendar year. 

Topics to be explored include:

• How airlines, airports, cruise operators, ports and tourism organisations can work together to stimulate off-peak demand and improve destination connectivity. 
• The economic cost of seasonal closures and the commercial case for year-round operations. 
• Workforce challenges and how destinations can retain skills and talent beyond peak periods. 
• Strategies to reduce economic leakage and maximise the value retained within destinations. 
• Emerging opportunities in cultural tourism and accessible tourism to attract high-value visitors during quieter months. 
• New approaches to measuring tourism success beyond visitor numbers, including resident wellbeing, visitor value and environmental impact. 

Steven Small, VP of Air Transport Events, Informa, said: "One-third of all EU tourism activity is concentrated in just two summer months. At the same time, destinations across Europe are challenged with overcrowding, pressure on infrastructure and stakeholder expectations for a more balanced approach to tourism development. The Tourism Seasonality Summit creates a unique opportunity for the organisations shaping travel demand to come together, share practical solutions and identify actions that can deliver sustainable growth throughout the year."

Small added: "With Routes Europe 2027 taking place in Antalya during the same week, the summit provides an ideal platform for destinations, airlines, airports and tourism stakeholders to collaborate on one of the most important challenges facing the industry today."

Ged Brown, CEO & Founder of Low Season Traveller, said: "We talk a lot about overtourism, but no destination knows its tourism capacity, so the real issue is how tourism is managed across the whole year. Visitor caps and taxes might ease the pressure for a few weeks, but they do nothing for the hotel that closes when the season ends or the chef who leaves for work elsewhere. After editions in Bahrain, Seville and Rimini, I've seen that progress comes when airlines, airports, hotels and destinations plan demand together. That's the thinking behind our 2027 theme, Designing Demand Together, and Antalya is the right place to put it into practice."

The Tourism Seasonality Summit 2027 will take place from 21-23 April 2027 at the NEST Congress & Exhibition Center in Antalya, Türkiye.