Spain Registered 13.7 Million International Tourists in First Quarter of 2023

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The National Institute of Statistics (INE) has revealed that in the first three months of this year, Spain received 13.7 million international tourists, which is an increase of 41.2 per cent compared to the same period last year.

From the beginning of January to the end of March, tourists spent a total of €17.201 million, marking an increase of 44.7 per cent compared to the quarter of 2022, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.

According to INE data, 5.3 million visitors arrived in Spain in March alone, marking an increase of 30 per cent compared to March 2022, who spent a total of €6.657 million, which is 31.1 per cent more than a year ago.

“These data show that 2023 is being an extraordinary year for tourism, not only quantitatively, but also qualitatively, with higher spending and longer stays,” the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism notes in a press release regarding the statistics.

During the month of March, the average expenditure per tourist was €1.266, with an annual increase of 0.7 per cent. As a result, average daily expenses increased up to 6.6 per cent or €168.

Meanwhile, regarding the stay, the average duration of international tourists’ trips was 7.6 days, which is almost similar to that of the previous year.

US Tourists Marked Largest Increase in Arrivals in March

The figures provided by INE also show that the United Kingdom continues to lead the tourism outbound market, with 1.1 million tourist arrivals. At the same time, it has experienced a significant increase in March, with 29.4 compared to the same month of 2022.

In terms of the number of visits to Spain, the second and third places are occupied by France and Germany. Thus, Germany contributed with 673,584 tourists, which is 10.7 per cent more in the annual rate, and France with 613,323, which represents an increase of 34.1 per cent compared to the previous year.

In addition, the other countries that saw an annual increase in visitors in March 2023 were the United States, with 74.1 per cent more compared to the same month in 2022, followed by Portugal, with 51.1 per cent more and Italy with 35.0 per cent.

Canary Islands & Catalonia Among Main Destinations for Tourists

Among the first main destinations for tourists during the month of March was the Canary Islands with 24.7 per cent of the total or a number of 1.3 million tourists, with an increase of 15.5 per cent compared to a year ago.

INE also revealed that the UK and Germany are the main countries of residence for tourists expected by this community with a percentage of 35.2 per cent and 18.4 per cent respectively.

The second community in terms of the number of international tourists is Catalonia – with 19.5 per cent. The same has also experienced strong growth compared to a year ago with 44.9 per cent more tourists arriving this March than last year. The female visitors who come to this community the most are French with 19.5 per cent and Italian with 9.8 per cent.

Andalucía took third place with a total of 803,139 visitors in March and an annual increase of 31.7 per cent. The main country of origin is the UK, with 26.6 per cent of the total, followed by the Nordic countries with 10.1 per cent.

Further INE data reveal that in the first three months of this year, the communities that receive the most tourists are the Canary Islands, with more than 3.7 million and an increase of 30.9 per cent compared to a year ago, Catalonia with almost 2.8 million and an increase of 53.4 per cent ​​and Andalusia with almost 2.0 million, 46.2 per cent more.

The annual increase in the number of tourists was also observed in other communities such as the Community of Madrid with 32.8 per cent and in the Balearic Islands with 17.5 per cent.

*Source: PATA, Level 26, Gaysorn Tower, 127 Ratchadamri Road, Lumpini, Pathumwan Bangkok 10330 Thailand communications@PATA.org