Follow this page for live updates and highlights from the Euronews Travel & Tourism Summit 2026 in Brussels
Eduardo Santander
Eduardo Santander, the CEO of the European Travel Commission, sat down with moderator Mared Gwyn-Jones to speak about the impact of the threat of climate change on global tourism and the role of Europe as a destination.
The CEO explained that “climate change is the biggest threat to tourism right now, by far.”
He was speaking following a summer of record heat and related travel chaos across the continent.
“We see that trains cannot run sometimes because the rails are expanded because of the heat. We saw this at the cruise lines on the European rivers – they couldn’t run because it was too dry,” Santander said.
“We have to prepare for that in a much more coordinated and comprehensive way,” he added.
“We see resilience becoming one of the engines of European tourism. We have to become even more resilient to whatever is next.”
Santander explained that, due to the impact of climate change, travel and tourism is getting less affordable.
“Travelling is becoming much more expensive, and you all have travelled this summer, I guess, and you notice it in your pockets.”
He also spoke about the trend for “coolcations”, which have gained plenty of traction this year, especially: “We see a lot of people from southern European destinations looking for what we call ‘cool locations’ — places that are cooler in summer and where you can enjoy the weather in a more predictable way.”
Santander also emphasised the economic importance of tourism, which makes up some 10% of the European economy, a figure that rises to between 15% and 20% of some nation’s GDP.
He also sang the praises of Europe as a tourism destination.
“Europe is becoming the playground, some people call it. It’s becoming a museum, an attraction park,” he said, asking, “what’s wrong with that?”
“An attraction park or a museum is a perfect place to be. Normally it’s well organised, well managed, they have a nice restaurant, they clean toilets, so there’s nothing wrong.”
Ambassador Bill White
Bill White, the Ambassador of the United States of America to the Kingdom of Belgium, sat down with summit host Jane Witherspoon to speak about the special relationship between the two nations.
While the Ambassador praised Belgium for having so much more to offer than “waffles, chocolate and beer”, he did criticise the lines at the airport in Brussels, saying they “suck”.
“They’re really bad. One of the things we have to do in our transatlantic alliance and relationship is to recognise that if we want people to come to Belgium, we have to fix this problem. It must get better immediately,” he added.
Nevertheless, White announced that he has received approval from President Donald Trump to allow Belgian citizens to apply for the US Global Entry programme, which is designed to speed up entry at US airports. Global Entry is a DHS programme for pre-approved international travellers.
In practical terms, he explained, that means: “you’ll register, you pay your fee, get vetted, and then you fly to the United States, and you look at the kiosk at JFK or wherever it is, you smile, don’t smile, you get ‘whoop!’ right through, and then you go get your bags and spend money”.
He urged Belgian citizens to “write to your congressman or your parliament person, let’s go, get the paperwork done, because when you travel, it’ll be seamless. One, two, three.”
Europe’s travel industry is in the spotlight today as the Euronews Travel & Tourism Summit 2026 gets underway at the Albert Hall in Brussels.
Throughout the day, Euronews will be live from the Belgian capital with interviews, panels and debates exploring how tourism is responding to a year marked by geopolitical disruption, airspace closures and extreme weather.
Among the headline guests is Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama, who will sit down with Euronews’ Maria Tadeo. Eduardo Santander, CEO of the European Travel Commission, will reflect on the trends and challenges that shaped Europe’s record-breaking summer travel season, while other discussions will examine sustainability, connectivity and the future of tourism in Europe.
Two of Euronews’ flagship programmes are joining the summit. The Big Question will examine whether Europe’s cruise industry can chart a greener course with MSC Cruises CEO Gianni Onorato, while The Ring, hosted by Méabh Mc Mahon, will bring its head-to-head political debate format to Brussels.
Doors open from 9am, with live coverage available throughout the day on Euronews.
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