Thursday, 22 October 2026
Slovakia’s tourism industry achieved its strongest nominal financial performance on record in 2024, generating €3.2 billion in direct economic output measured by GDP, according to figures published by the Statistical Office of the Slovak Republic on 21 October 2026. The results highlight the growing financial importance of hospitality, accommodation and visitor-related services, although the number of tourism trips remains considerably below levels recorded before the pandemic.
Tourism accounted for 2.5% of Slovakia’s total GDP in 2024, its highest proportion since 2020, while the sector generated €2.7 billion in direct gross value added. Despite reaching new financial highs, tourism’s contribution to the wider economy remained below the proportions recorded during the stronger years preceding 2020. The difference reflects broader economic growth, changes in tourism activity and adjustments to statistical calculations.
The combined production of industries associated with tourism reached approximately €13.4 billion, exceeding the €10 billion recorded in 2019 for the third consecutive year. Accommodation providers, restaurants and passenger transport businesses remained central to the industry’s economic contribution. Together, these activities represented approximately 60% of tourism’s direct gross value added, demonstrating the importance of hospitality facilities and transport infrastructure to the sector.
Visitor expenditure also increased substantially, reaching €8.8 billion in 2024, approximately €1.2 billion above the previous year and €2 billion higher than in 2019. Domestic travellers spent €3.5 billion within Slovakia, while international visitors contributed €2.3 billion. Spending by Slovak residents travelling abroad approached €2.9 billion, reflecting particularly strong growth in outbound tourism expenditure.
The increase in spending was not accompanied by a comparable recovery in visitor numbers. Slovakia recorded approximately 55 million domestic, inbound and outbound tourism trips in 2024, representing a 1.4% annual decline and remaining more than 22% below the 71 million trips registered in 2019. Domestic travel accounted for approximately 32 million trips, falling 6.4% compared with the previous year, while international arrivals and outbound journeys each increased by around 6%.
For Slovakia’s hotel and hospitality property market, the figures suggest that higher expenditure per journey has become an increasingly important feature of the tourism economy. Accommodation represented 24.2% of spending by visitors travelling within Slovakia, while restaurants and other food services accounted for 18.6%. These expenditure patterns are relevant to hotel operators, hospitality investors and developers assessing the potential for new accommodation projects and upgrades to existing properties.
Employment figures presented a more restrained picture. Approximately 172,000 people worked in tourism-related industries during 2024, a marginal annual decrease of 0.3%. Employees accounted for 85% of the workforce, with self-employed individuals representing the remainder. Food and beverage businesses employed approximately 68,000 people, while passenger transport accounted for another 20,000. Health resorts recorded employment growth of 7.1%, contrasting with reductions in accommodation, transport and several other tourism activities.
The latest statistics provide a useful indication of the financial scale of Slovakia’s hospitality economy as property owners and investors consider future opportunities. However, the combination of record nominal expenditure and lower travel volumes also underlines the importance of distinguishing higher prices and spending per trip from growth in visitor demand. For the hotel and tourism property sectors, future investment decisions will depend not only on expenditure trends but also on occupancy, operating costs, profitability and the ability to attract visitors throughout the year.
