The allure that Spain presents to tourists from around the world is getting greater and greater. In 2023, Spain received a record-breaking number of tourists, registering a total of 85.1 million visitors.
This represents an 18.7 increase over 2022, and an extra 1.6 million over 2019’s pre-pandemic levels.
Visitors from the United Kingdom, France and Germany accounted for the top three, registering 17.3 million, 11.8 million and 10.8 million respectively. It is actually the first year when tourist visitors from France have been higher than the numbers received from Germany.
Spain is vying to become Europe’s number one tourist destination where it may overtake France in terms of foreign tourists for the first time in history. The French government has not yet released their estimates, which are expected to range from 79 to 85 million visitors.
The region that welcomed the most tourists last year was Catalunya, with 21.2 million, followed by the Balearic Islands, with 16.9 million; the Canary Islands, 16.4 million; Andalucia, 14.3 million; the Valencian Community, 12.3 million, and Madrid on 9.2 million.
The number of tourists in Andalucia are expected to rise even higher in 2024 as the Turismo Costa del Sol are heavily conducting marketing campaigns that are promoting the Costa del Sol to high-spending British tourists, having invested over €600,000.00 at London’s World Travel Market exhibition in November alone.
The financial benefits of Spain’s allure to international tourists is significant, with visitors accountable for contributing an extra €108 billion towards the country’s economy. This represents a remarkable 25% increase upon the preceding year. In all, the tourism sector has contributed towards 12% of the entire country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
When it comes to accounting for expenditure, visitors from the United Kingdom continue to lead with €19.9 billion (a 16.3% increase over 2022). Germany comes in second with €12.9 billion, up 12.6%, while France comes in third with €9,7 billion, up 19.7%.
As we kick-start the new year, we are gearing up for another record year of visitors that will again bring record levels of tourism revenue. We also anticipate to be welcoming even more property buyers, whether it is for second homes, holiday homes, investment assets – or for people who are looking to relocate and to make Spain their home.