The institutional tension over the Catalan question could have consequences on Spanish tourism. According to one of the sector's leading forums, the WTTC (World Travel & Tourism Council), the conflict between the Spanish and Catalan government could cause cancellations of "important groups" in cities like Madrid and Valencia.
The WTTC's president and CEO, Glòria Guevara, has warned of the important role of the Spanish government in avoiding these consequences for the tourism and hotel sectors. "If Spain doesn't control what is happening in Catalonia in the coming weeks, the negative effects with respect to tourism will be noted at the end of the year," she said in statements to Europa Press.
For this reason, Guevara suggested that the longer the situation lasts for, the worse the effects for the image of Spain as an international destination. "It's a shame that Spain has worked so hard [to build up its image as a tourist destination] for something like this to create such a bad image and to destabilise things. The longer this situation lasts for, the more negative the consequences will be," she said.
Guevara, in fact, says that the conflict is already harming Spanish tourism, that the negative effects are starting to be felt. From her point of view, it's still too early to know if it will stop Spain from reaching its predicted 80 million international visitors this year, but that the effects will be seen in 2018.