TRAVELLERS have been urged to buy air tickets ‘as soon as possible’ to avoid higher fares caused by oil price hikes due to the Iran war.
The warning has come from Spain’s Tourism Minister, Jordi Hereu in an interview published in the Expansion newspaper on Monday.
After a record 97 million overseas tourists last year, Hereu is hopeful that total will be beaten in 2026, but has concerns over air fuel prices.
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Jordi Hereu said: “What we’re recommending is that people buy their tickets now because it’s true that (airlines) are currently using kerosene that was purchased some time ago, and therefore there’s an element of price fluctuations involved.”
“It’s already clear that prices have risen and this could affect demand,” he said, adding that Spanish and European authorities were taking measures to prevent fuel shortages.
Disruption to global oil supplies has pushed prices up by around 50% since the US and Israel launched strikes on Iran on February 28.
Hereu continued: “Everything we analyse right now is subject to the evolution of a phenomenon over which we have no control and over whose evolution we do not have a crystal ball to see what might happen”.
He was nevertheless quietly confidant that Spain will continue to do well in attracting foreign visitors.
“We have to continue with our current efforts and I would say almost more strongly, with the regional governments, with the cities and with the entire business sector.”
Asked by Expansion as to whether Spain will be picking up more tourists this year due to Middle East vacation cancellations, Hereu responded: “We have the capacity to attract more volume, but we also have to do our homework.”
“Some regions already show occupancy levels close to the limit, especially in July and August, and so we will see, and we will have to manage the situation,” he added.
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