Fitur consolidates its position as a global tourism platform
- Epicentre of world tourism
- The Knowledge Pavilion, Fitur Experience and MICE Summit, key new features
- More than 250,000 visitors and an economic impact of 487 million for Madrid
- Mexico, Partner Country of Fitur 2026
- Attractiveness of relevant countries in the world of tourism
The Madrid International Tourism Fair, Fitur, reached its 46th edition in 2026, consolidating its position as a global tourism platform. At this year's edition, scheduled from 21 to 25 January, every detail has been taken care of with a wide range of activities to promote an impressive range of tourism offerings from around the world.
King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia presided over the official opening of the international tourism fair at the IFEMA Exhibition Centre in Madrid with a tour of the event's highlights.
The atmosphere was affected by the terrible train accident in Adamuz, Córdoba, which left more than 40 people dead and led to three days of mourning, minutes of silence on the first day of the tourism fair and a very special tribute by the Spanish monarchs to the Spaniards who died in this tragedy.
The inauguration of Fitur by the King and Queen of Spain took place on the last of the three days of official mourning decreed for the train disaster.
The Spanish monarchs have once again shown their support for the important tourism sector and this fair, a global meeting point for tourism professionals.
IFEMA's Feria de Madrid hosted Fitur 2026, which this year welcomed 161 countries, a 3% increase on last year, and 10,000 companies, a 5% increase on 2025.
Mexico participated as a Partner Country in an edition that brought together 967 exhibitors, representing an 11% increase in international participation.
The Knowledge Pavilion, Fitur Experience and the 1st International Communication and Tourism Summit also took centre stage as new features of the 46th edition, which positions Fitur as the world's leading tourism fair.
Epicentre of world tourism
Fitur reached its 46th edition in 2026 as the epicentre of world tourism, consolidating its position as the global platform for the sector, with a firm commitment to knowledge and the strengthening of its international dimension.
One only has to look at the figures for the Madrid tourism fair: 9 pavilions, 10,000 companies represented from 161 countries, 111 of them with official representation (10 more than in the last edition) and 967 exhibitors.
Eighteen countries have joined Fitur 2026, mainly from Africa and Asia-Pacific, regions which, according to UN Tourism, led global growth with +10% and +8% in arrivals, respectively, and increases in Fitur of 34% and 22% in exhibition space.
Among the new participating destinations are Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Zanzibar and regions of Germany and the United Kingdom, among others. José Vicente de los Mozos, president of the Executive Committee of IFEMA Madrid, said: "These figures reaffirm Fitur's role as the benchmark meeting point for the global tourism market, reflecting the strength and maturity of an expanding industry.
Madrid is once again the epicentre of global tourism dialogue, showcasing Spain's ability to lead the way in attracting travellers and generating trends and opportunities that will drive the future of tourism on a global scale."
The data from Fitur 2026 confirms the excellent momentum of the tourism sector, which is showing solid growth and pointing to historic levels of activity, exceeding the 2019 figures between January and September 2025 with more than 1.1 billion international tourists, according to UN Tourism.
The Knowledge Pavilion, Fitur Experience and MICE Summit, key new features
In this context of strength in the tourism industry, Fitur 2026 announced major new developments with the aim of not only being the largest tourism fair in terms of participants and visitors, but also the major global forum for discussing the future of the sector.
Thus, the Knowledge Pavilion, located in Pavilion 12 and open during the professional days, was inaugurated. A space conceived as a strategic centre for tourism knowledge, with 8 auditoriums, 10 conference programmes, more than 200 sessions and more than 250 top-level speakers.
In addition, the Knowledge Pavilion hosted other key new features of the 46th edition: the new Fitur Experience section, which focused on how experiential tourism has established itself as one of the most transformative dynamics in the sector; and the 1st International Summit on Communication and Tourism, which addressed the challenges of tourism communication together with experts in information verification and leaders from the public and private sectors. Another highlight of this Pavilion was the Travel Technology area, which doubled in size and brought together more than 190 leading companies in the digitalisation of the entire tourism industry value chain.
More than 250,000 visitors and an economic impact of 487 million for Madrid
At the opening of Fitur 2026, more than 250,000 professionals and travellers were expected to attend. This forecast, together with the data on the participation of companies and destinations, reflects the dynamism that Fitur brings to the Madrid region, with an economic impact that, in the previous edition, reached 487 million euros.
Mexico, Partner Country of Fitur 2026
Among the new features for 2026, Mexico's participation as Partner Country also stood out, with a spectacular display at the Fair in a context of tourism growth in the country, up 13.9% from January to September 2025, according to data from Sectur, and with the aim of climbing from sixth to fifth most visited country in the world..
Attractiveness of relevant countries in the world of tourism
Certain countries have showcased their attractive and exotic tourist offerings at Fitur 2026. Among them are examples such as Morocco and the United Arab Emirates, in this case represented by the Abu Dhabi and Dubai stands, marking new participations in Fitur for these emirates.
Morocco's stand at Fitur 2026 showcased a blend of ancient traditional cultural heritage and modern tourist attractions. The presence of the Moroccan National Tourist Office (ONMT) served to reinforce the North African country's tourism brand, which is already very strong thanks to tourism initiatives such as those promoted by the ‘Morocco, Land of Light’ campaign, which has served to further boost Morocco's highly relevant tourism sector, one of the economic drivers of the North African country.
The Moroccan stand served to showcase different tourist destinations in the North African country, highlighting the existing offer in various enclaves from north to south of Morocco. With interesting spots such as Tangier, Fez, Marrakech, Agadir and even Dakhla, a tourist destination in the south that is highly attractive for its beaches and ecotourism.
There was also room for a wide range of pavilions from all of Spain's autonomous communities, which showcased their tourist attractions at the international tourism fair in Madrid.