Hot summer getaways are still popular – but tourism industry fears impact of rising jet fuel costs and squeezed household incomes
After a year marked by extreme heat and war sending fuel prices skywards, British travel executives hoped for solace in Madeira’s benign subtropical climate, separated by hundreds of miles of blue sea from the overtourism protests and six-hour EU-entry queues seen on the Portuguese mainland.
As bosses admitted, holidays will be ever less affordable, AI is coming for their jobs, and the visitable world is shrinking – not least those parts where tourists remain welcome.
The Guardian’s travel to the convention in Madeira was provided by Abta