Lorraine Williamson
Spain’s food has long been one of its great calling cards. What is changing now is the role it plays in travel itself. For growing numbers of visitors, meals, markets, wineries and local producers are no longer the extra treat tagged onto a holiday. They are the reason for booking the trip in the first place. That wider shift matters for Spain because tourism is still a major economic force, with international visitor spending reaching €134.7 billion in 2025, according to the National Statistics Institute.
This is where Spain’s gastronomic tourism becomes more than a lifestyle trend. It offers something the country badly needs: a way to spread visitor interest beyond the same beaches, city breaks and summer hotspots. Food gives travellers a reason to look inland, stay longer and spend more locally. It also ties tourism to something more durable than sunshine alone — place, identity and tradition. Culinary tourism is increasingly shaping the future of the sector in Spain, as travellers place more value on local culture, products and authentic experiences.
When the destination is a flavour, not just a map pin
The appeal of gastronomic travel is simple enough to understand. People not only want to eat well on holiday, but they also want to understand what they are eating and why it belongs to that place. That means tasting Albariño where Atlantic air shapes the vineyards, trying olive oil close to the groves where it is pressed, or discovering why tapas culture feels entirely different in a town square in southern Spain than in a city-centre bar elsewhere.
Spain is particularly well placed to benefit because its culinary offer is not built around one national style. It is built around many regional identities. Galicia speaks through seafood and white wine. The Basque Country mixes pintxo culture with elite dining. Catalonia combines market life, Mediterranean produce and modern creativity. Andalucia brings together olive oil, tapas, sherry and centuries of cultural exchange. That diversity is one of Spain’s biggest advantages in a competitive travel market.
Why this matters beyond the restaurant table
The strongest case for gastronomic tourism is not only about prestige or pleasure. It is about geography and economics. Food tourism can pull visitors towards smaller towns, wine regions, inland provinces and rural producers that often sit outside Spain’s classic holiday routes. A beach can be crowded with seasonal demand. A food trail, harvest event or winery route can help keep money moving through less obvious places.
That matters in a country still trying to balance record tourism demand with local pressure on housing, infrastructure and daily life. Culinary travel offers a softer, more distributed model. It encourages visitors to explore with purpose rather than simply gather in the same overexposed hotspots. It also gives smaller businesses — family-run restaurants, cheesemakers, olive oil producers, vineyards and market traders — a stronger place in the visitor economy.
Spain’s advantage: heritage and ambition on the same plate
Spain’s reputation is also being strengthened from both ends of the market. At the top end, the country continues to perform strongly in international fine dining. TourSpain notes that the Michelin Guide 2025 recognises 291 restaurants in Spain, underlining the country’s global culinary pull. At the same time, Michelin’s Green Star awards point to a growing emphasis on sustainability, local sourcing and responsible practices, not just luxury.
But the real power of Spain’s food scene is that it does not rely on Michelin stars to impress. Much of its appeal sits in ordinary rituals: the market stall, the neighbourhood bar, the village festival, the bodega visit, the tasting route through a wine region, the long lunch shaped by local produce and climate. That combination of prestige and accessibility is hard to replicate. Spain can sell high gastronomy to the world, but it can also sell the simple joy of eating well in the right place.
From city breaks to edible landscapes
One of the most interesting changes is how food is reshaping the way destinations are marketed. Tourism boards are increasingly presenting places through flavours and products rather than monuments alone. TourSpain has been highlighting major food-led events and routes, from Alicante’s gastronomic showcase to wine-focused tourism in Zaragoza and broader wine routes linked to Rioja, Jerez and Ribera del Duero.
That reflects a wider truth about modern travel. Visitors increasingly want a story they can enter, not just a list of sights to photograph. Food works because it connects history, climate, farming, migration and daily life in one experience. You can explain a region’s past in a museum. You can taste part of that same story at lunch.
The opportunity Spain should not waste
Spain has all the ingredients to keep leading here, but success will depend on how carefully it handles the next phase. If gastronomic tourism becomes too standardised, too commercial or too detached from local communities, it risks losing the authenticity that makes it attractive. The challenge is to grow without flattening the very differences that draw people in.
Handled well, though, this is one of the country’s most convincing tourism stories. Spain does not need to invent a culinary identity for visitors. It already has one — plural, regional, deeply rooted and globally admired. The opportunity now is to use that strength not just to feed tourists, but to guide them towards a fuller, more balanced experience of the country.
Food as Spain’s quieter tourism revolution
Sun and sea will always sell Spain. But food is becoming a more interesting long-term engine. It invites visitors to travel differently, spend differently and look beyond the obvious. In a tourism market searching for authenticity, sustainability and real connection, that may prove far more valuable than another postcard view.