London,
31
October
2014
|
17:20
Europe/Amsterdam

SPAIN'S VISITOR FIGURES CONTINUE TO RISE WITH A 7.4% YEAR ON YEAR INCREASE

Summary
  • Between January and September 2014, Spain saw a 7.4% increase in visitors when compared to 2013, with over 52.4 million international visitors
     
  • Total tourism expenditure from January 2014 to the end of September 2014 has grown by 7.3% year on year to €50.6 billion
     
  • In September alone, Spain welcomed over 7 million international visitors, up 8.1% year on year, while tourism expenditure grew by 6.8%, with a total spend of €7.1 billion
     
  • The UK continues to be Spain’s strongest market for inbound tourism and expenditure, accounting for 25.3% of all international visits in September (+5.5%) and 21.9% of the total spend
     
  • UK visitor expenditure experienced a 6.9% year on year rise between January and September 2014, totalling €10.4 billion and accounting for 20.6% of the total tourism spend

Source Markets

During September 2014, Spain welcomed more than 1.7 million UK visitors, making the UK the largest international tourism market to the country and representing 25% of all international tourists. The monthly figure represented a year on year increase of 5.5%.

In September 2014, Germany was the second strongest inbound tourism market to Spain, accounting for 17.5% of all international visitors, a 3% year on year increase.

In terms of tourism expenditure in Spain, September 2014 saw a total spend of €7 billion, up 6.8% year on year. The UK accounted for the largest part (21.9%), followed by Germany (16.5%) and France (10.3%).

Cumulatively since January 2014, Spain has welcomed over 52.4 million international tourists, a rise of 7.4% year on year, including over 12.4 million UK visitors (+5.6%). Tourism expenditure in Spain from January 2014 to the end of September 2014 has grown by 7.3% to €50.6 billion, with the UK accounting for 20.6% (+6.9%), followed by Germany (15.6%) and France (10.4%).

Key destinations

During September 2014, all Spanish regions witnessed positive yearly increases in terms of international visitor numbers.

In September 2014, Catalonia scooped 25.7% of all total international visits, receiving 1.8 million visitors, a year on year increase of 10.6%, helped by an increase in French, Asian and Italian arrivals. Expenditure in the region also saw a large increase of 8.7%, with a total spend of almost €1.8 billion (representing 25.8% of the total).

Cumulatively from January until the end of September 2014, Catalonia welcomed 13.5 million visitors (+6.6%), representing 25.7% of total international visits. With a total tourism spend of €12.2 billion (+6%), Catalonia accounted for 24.1% of Spain’s total tourism expenditure between January and September.

The Balearic Islands received the second highest number of visitors in September, 1.7 million, up 3.1% year on year, mainly fuelled by the German, French and Portuguese markets. However, the region did experience a 2.4% drop in expenditure year on year.

From January until the end of September, the Balearic Islands have welcomed 10.2 million international visits (+2.3%). Total tourism expenditure in the Balearic Islands for the same period totalled €9.3 billion (-2.3%), accounting for 18.4% of the total tourism spend.

For September 2014, Andalucía received 959,000 international visitors, a 7.5% year on year increase, with the UK being the principal market to the region. Expenditure was also up by 8.6% year on year, to €1 billion.

Cumulatively since January 2014, Andalucía has welcomed over 6.9 million international visitors (+8%), with expenditure increasing by 11.4% to €7.6 billion.

In September 2014 the Canary Islands welcomed over 845,000 international visitors (+7.5%), mainly fuelled by UK visitors. The Canary Islands recorded a total spend of €899,000 in September, a 5.3% increase year on year. Since January 2014, the Canary Islands has received more than 8.4 million international visitors (+11.4%) with the total tourism expenditure reaching €9.1 billion (+12.5%).

Valencia recorded an increase in visitors of 2.9% in September 2014, accounting for 9.3% of Spain’s international arrivals. In terms of spend, this increased by 6.6% to €618,000. Cumulatively from January 2014 until the end of September, Valencia welcomed over 5.1 million visitors (+4.8%) and took 8.6% of the total tourism spend (€4.6 billion).

Madrid and the surroundings recorded a huge 15.3% increase in visitor arrivals in September 2014, accounting for 6.2% of all Spain’s visitors. Expenditure in Madrid also increased by 9.6% in September to €499,000.

Cumulatively from January 2014 until the end of September, Madrid and surrounds has welcomed over 3.4 million visitors, a 9.6% year on year increase and has also recorded a 12% increase in expenditure.

The rest of Spain also saw a positive increases in terms of international visitors and tourism expenditure during September 2014 (+18.6% and +28.4% respectively).

Other key statistics

During September 2014, 82% of all international visitors to Spain arrived by plane (+7.1%) whilst road access accounted for 16.1% of all arrivals, a year on year increase of 13.5%.

Whilst most visitors opted for hotel accommodation (64%) in September 2014, rented accommodation saw a year on year increase of 26.9% and accounted for 12.5% of visits. Cumulatively since January 2014, hotels were the accommodation of choice for 62.5% of visitors.

In terms of types of travel, in September 2014, 70% of international visitors opted to visit Spain independently (+12.3%), while package holidays saw a 0.7% drop.

Boilerplate

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