Tourism has been a fast-growing industry bringing not only significant economic benefits and opportunities but also environmental and social costs. Nowadays, tourism is facing one of the most impactful crises worldwide. According to the World Tourism Organization, the unprecedented global pandemic has had severe impact on tourism. International tourist arrivals registered a decrease of over 57% in March 2020 worldwide, representing a loss of 67 million international tourists and 80 billion USD in receipts. The decline is predicted to continue with international tourist arrivals expected to drop between 58% and 78% in 2020. The global economy is expected to decrease over 3% and recovery is likely not to occur before 2021. Uncertainty has come to play an influential role in the tourism literature as well as social life worldwide.

This special issue focuses on measuring tourism impacts. It was conceived before the pandemic crisis and it is released at a time when the need for sensible policies of national and international cooperation is of greater urgency than ever. Policymakers and stakeholders currently look to seek how to maximize benefits and minimize repercussions considering both demand and supply. Research on methods that adequately assess social, environmental, and economic impacts of tourism is of considerable importance given the present and unique dynamics of this industry.

To adequately measure and forecast the impact of tourism we rely on the quality of statistical information available, the spectrum of unexpected events (natural disasters, crises, trends, acts of terrorism, etc.) as well as endogenous and exogenous factors influencing the tourism industry. Although there is some consensus in assessing the dynamics of tourism based on GDP, employment, investment, and other macroeconomic indicators, this transcends the macroeconomic level. This issue aims to bring to the fore methods that contribute to correctly measure different dimensions influencing tourism, including the Covid-19 phenomenon.

In the first paper, entitled “Dynamic spillover effects among tourism, economic growth and macro-finance risk factors”, Syed J.H. Shahzad and Román Ferrer discuss the impact of economic growth and major macroeconomic and financial variables on tourism. The findings of this paper provide evidence on the relation between tourism and economic growth in the US, which are relevant for policy makers and companies operating in the tourism industry.

The second work on “Causal interactions among tourism, foreign direct investment, domestic credits, and economic growth: evidence from selected Mediterranean countries” by Ayhan Tecel, Salih Katircioğlu, Elham Taheri, and Festus V. Bekun, also addresses economic impacts of tourism. The tourism-led growth hypothesis is analysed and results suggest that tourism and economic growth are intertwined.

Asunción Fernández-Villarán, Nagore Espinosa, Marina Abad, and Ana Goytia discuss methods to measure the carrying capacity in tourism destinations. Their study, “Model for measuring carrying capacity in inhabited tourism destinations”, is currently on the agenda of tourism governance as a possible form of controlling the flow of tourists in destinations in order to ensure that social distancing is implemented and controlled.

The article on “Measuring the economic contribution of tourism to destinations within an input-output framework: some methodological issues” by Andrés Artal-Tur, José M. Navarro-Azorín, and José M. Ramos-Parreño examines input-output models to accurately measure the economic impact of tourism in Spanish regions.

Carlos D. Santos uses a nested logit model to measure the impact of online ratings on tourism demand. The work developed on “Online word-of-mouth and market structure” shows, among other things, that hotels with lower star ratings may increase their reputation through online user-generated content. The approach used is of particular interest especially during these times of uncertainty in which trust is an important driver of tourism demand.

Luís D. Santos and Ana C. Vieira examine regional impacts and spill-over effects at the municipality level. Their paper “Tourism and regional development: a spatial econometric model for Portugal at municipal level” shows that a coastline cluster and an inland cluster are evident in tourism development at the spatial level, and reinforces the importance of tourism growth for regional economic development.

“Modeling the impact of wars and terrorism on tourism demand in Kurdistan region of Iraq”, by Ahmed M. Omer and Mehmet Yeşiltaş analyzes the impact of political conflicts on tourism demand. A comparative analysis of terrorist attacks and wars suggests that the latter have a stronger impact. Uncertainty and safety impact tourism demand.