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Coffee is a global economic force, a cultural ambassador, and a daily necessity for millions of travelers. Yet hotels, airports, and tourism destinations frequently underestimate its value—and sometimes the people who grow it benefit least.
Coffee is one of the most frequently encountered products in global travel, connecting airport concessions, hotel breakfasts, independent cafés, coffee-growing destinations, and millions of workers. Yet despite its commercial and cultural importance, coffee quality remains an inconsistent part of the hospitality experience.
For travelers, the difference between an excellent espresso and a disappointing hotel breakfast brew can influence the impression of an entire stay. For tourism businesses, coffee creates revenue, shapes brand loyalty, and offers opportunities to support local communities. But who benefits most from this global addiction to caffeine—and why does an industry capable of designing extraordinary luxury experiences still struggle to serve a decent cup of coffee?
Coffee: A Global Industry Hidden in Plain Sight
The Food and Agriculture Organization estimates that world coffee production exceeded 11 million tonnes in 2024, with international trade valued at more than $34 billion.
These figures describe the agricultural and trading economy, not the total value of coffee sold in hotels, airports, cafés, restaurants, and retail outlets. The broader economic footprint is considerably larger, although there is no single universally accepted figure for coffee’s contribution to tourism.
Coffee generates both direct and indirect economic benefits. Farmers, exporters, roasters, baristas, equipment suppliers, logistics companies, and hospitality operators all participate in the value chain.
An airport cappuccino may sell for several dollars, but the farmer who grew its beans receives only a fraction of the final retail price.
This is where tourism’s coffee story becomes more complicated. The industry celebrates authentic coffee experiences, yet much of the higher-value processing, branding, and retail profit may occur far from coffee-producing communities.
For destinations such as Colombia, Ethiopia, Costa Rica, and Vietnam, coffee tourism offers an opportunity to retain more visitor spending locally through farm visits, tastings, accommodation, guided experiences, and direct sales.
The question is whether tourism creates meaningful additional income for farmers or merely another attractive photograph for visitors.
Airport Coffee: A Luxury, a Necessity, or a Captive Market?
At 5 a.m., an airport coffee shop may be the most important business in the terminal.
Travelers are tired, anxious about connections, and frequently operating in a different time zone. A familiar coffee brand provides reassurance.
Starbucks has built an international identity around predictable drinks, recognizable menus, and convenience. Einstein Bros. Bagels combines coffee with breakfast products, making the coffee-and-bagel combination attractive to passengers seeking something quick before departure.
Independent airport cafés can provide a more distinctive experience, particularly when they showcase local coffee roasters or regional traditions.
But airports also create a commercial problem: passengers have limited choices once they pass security.
High concession rents, labor expenses, extended operating hours, and logistical requirements contribute to airport food-and-beverage prices. However, travelers are entitled to question whether those costs justify mediocre coffee at premium prices.
A passenger who pays $7 for a cappuccino should not receive something resembling warm milk that once attended a coffee seminar.
Airport operators should recognize that coffee influences the perception of airport quality, not just concession revenue.
Hotels: The Five-Star Breakfast With Two-Star Coffee
The modern hotel industry has mastered the art of presenting breakfast as an experience.
Guests encounter artisanal breads, imported cheeses, fresh fruit displays, elaborate egg stations, and sometimes champagne.
Then they approach the coffee machine.
One button promises espresso. Another promises cappuccino. A third produces something described as café latte, although its connection to Italian coffee culture may be purely theoretical.
Not all automated machines produce poor coffee. Many deliver excellent results when properly maintained and supplied with quality beans.
The problem is that coffee is often treated as a low-priority operational cost rather than an important part of guest satisfaction.
Hotels should understand that travelers have different preferences.
American visitors may expect freshly brewed filter coffee with refills. Italian guests may prefer a short, strong espresso. Germans often appreciate filter coffee as well as cappuccino and other espresso drinks. Scandinavian travelers may prioritize high-quality light-roasted brewed coffee.
These are cultural tendencies, not universal rules.
A well-designed international breakfast should offer meaningful choices, not assume that one automatic machine satisfies every nationality.
The irony is difficult to ignore: some hotels will spend thousands of dollars upgrading bathroom amenities while continuing to serve coffee that tastes like a complaint waiting to happen.
From Ethiopia to Vienna: Coffee Was Global Before Tourism Became Global
Coffee’s history is itself a story of international movement.
Its origins are closely associated with Ethiopia, while Yemen played a central role in developing coffee drinking and its early international trade. Coffee spread through the Ottoman world before becoming established in European cities.
Coffeehouses eventually became places where merchants conducted business, intellectuals debated politics, and travelers exchanged information.
In many ways, coffeehouses were early international networking centers—without membership fees, conference badges, or complicated registration platforms.
Vienna developed one of Europe’s most distinctive coffeehouse traditions. Austrian authorities included Viennese coffeehouse culture in the national inventory of intangible cultural heritage in 2011.
Österreichische UNESCO-Kommission
Coffee became part of a destination’s identity, not simply something consumed between sightseeing activities.
That cultural role remains important today.
Where Travelers Go for Coffee—and Why
Where Travelers Go for Coffee—and Why
Five destinations, five distinct coffee traditions.
| Destination | Coffee Culture and Travel Appeal |
|---|---|
 |
Italy: Espresso as a National Ritual Rome, Naples, and Milan offer neighborhood espresso bars, skilled baristas, and the experience of drinking coffee standing at a counter. |
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Austria: Coffee as a Reason to Stay Longer Vienna’s coffeehouses combine architecture, conversation, pastries, and a tradition of spending considerable time over a single cup. |
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Ethiopia: Coffee as a Cultural Ceremony Coffee preparation can become an extended social experience involving roasting, brewing, hospitality, and conversation. |
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Colombia: Coffee as a Tourism Economy The UNESCO-listed Coffee Cultural Landscape combines agriculture, heritage, mountain scenery, and rural communities. |
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Türkiye: Coffee as Hospitality and Tradition Turkish coffee connects visitors with centuries-old preparation methods and social customs. |
Melbourne, Copenhagen, Seattle, and Tokyo also attract coffee enthusiasts through their specialty coffee scenes.
These destinations illustrate different reasons for coffee-related travel; they are not a measured global ranking of traveler preferences.
Coffee, Jet Lag, and the International Traveler’s Biological Clock
Coffee has another important relationship with tourism: time.
Travelers crossing multiple time zones often rely on caffeine to remain alert during business meetings, sightseeing, or long connections.
However, caffeine does not cure jet lag.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention explains that jet lag results from a mismatch between the body’s internal clock and the destination’s local time. Strategic caffeine consumption may improve alertness, but drinking coffee too close to bedtime can interfere with recovery.
CDC Yellow Book™
For an international business traveler arriving after an overnight flight, a morning coffee may be useful. Repeated espresso drinks late in the day can make adjusting to the new time zone more difficult.
Individual caffeine tolerance also varies. Excessive consumption may contribute to anxiety, palpitations, or sleep disruption in susceptible people.
Coffee can help travelers function. It cannot negotiate with the Earth’s rotation.
Who Benefits—and Who May Be Left Behind?
The winners in the coffee tourism economy include international chains, airport concessionaires, hotel operators, independent cafés, roasters, and destinations that successfully develop coffee experiences.
But the benefits are not automatically shared equally.
Small producers may face unstable prices, climate pressures, and limited bargaining power. Independent cafés compete with multinational companies possessing stronger purchasing power and brand recognition.
Hotels may purchase inexpensive coffee to control breakfast costs, transferring the consequences of that decision to guests and potentially to producers.
Tourism businesses promoting sustainable coffee should therefore explain what sustainability actually means.
Are farmers receiving fair compensation? Are local suppliers participating? Are environmental claims independently supported? Does coffee tourism create year-round employment?
These questions matter more than placing the word sustainable beside a coffee cup on a breakfast menu.
What Hotels, Airports, and Tourism Destinations Should Do Next
Coffee deserves greater attention in hospitality management, destination marketing, and visitor-experience planning.
Hotels should evaluate coffee quality as seriously as breakfast variety. Airports should balance concession revenue with value, service, and local identity. Tourism authorities should recognize coffeehouses, roasting traditions, and producing communities as potential cultural attractions.
Local roaster partnerships, staff training, fresh preparation, transparent sourcing, and genuine choices between espresso and filter coffee are practical improvements.
There is also a commercial opportunity in making coffee part of a destination’s story rather than simply another standardized purchase.
The unanswered industry question is whether operators will treat better coffee as a strategic investment or continue viewing it as an expense to minimize.
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