The National Institute of Statistics (INE) revealed that Spain registered a total of 4.3 million international tourists in February this year, which is 35.9% more than the same period last year.
Data provided by INE also shows that tourists spent 5,326 million euros on travel and accommodation, which is 1,551 million euros or 41.1 percent more than in February 2021, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.
The same source said that the levels of tourist arrivals in February this year were equal to those before the pandemic. In this regard, INE pointed out that in 2019 only 58,974 tourists came, more than in February 2023.
In January and February this year, the number of tourists who visited Spain increased by 49.1 percent, reaching nearly 8.5 million. During the same period of 2022, 5.7 million arrived, while compared to the first two months of 2019, the arrival of tourists was only 1.3 percent less.
“This is shaping up to be an exceptional start to the year for tourism, on the cusp of Easter when we expect records to be broken for occupancy and spending.” the Minister of Industry, Trade and Tourism, Héctor Gómez, noted in this regard.
In terms of spending, INE data reveals that compared to February 2019, international tourists spent €659 million more in February this year.
In February, the average price per tourist was 1,233 euros, with an annual increase of 3.8 percent. At the same time, average daily costs also increased by 19.2% to €163.
During this period, the length of stay of tourists in Spain was from four to seven nights, with almost 2.1 million and an annual growth of 37.2 percent. In addition, trips of eight to 15 nights also saw a strong increase of 27.1 percent.
For a total of 3.5 million tourists who came to Spain in February, the main purpose was recreation, representing an annual increase of 33.3 percent. Also, the percentage of people traveling to Spain for business purposes increased by 65.5 percent.
The United Kingdom continues to lead the tourism market in Spain
When it comes to the countries that sent the most tourists to Spain in February 2023, the United Kingdom continues to remain at the top with 784,496 tourists and an increase of 35.6 percent compared to the same month in 2022.
Second and third places are occupied by France and Germany, from where 636,530 and 509,883 tourists come respectively.
An annual increase in tourists was also observed from the USA with 93 percent, Italy with 44 percent and Switzerland with 42.8 percent. The main emitters in the first two months of this year are the United Kingdom with over 1.5 million tourists and an annual increase of 61.9%, France with over 1.1 million and an increase of 30.2% and Germany with 988,142 tourists , with 47.2 percent more.
The Canary Islands remain the top tourist destination in February 2023
The Canary Islands remain the top tourist destination in February this year with 1.2 million tourists, an increase of 27.1% over a year ago. As a result, the main countries of residence for tourists coming to these islands are the United Kingdom with 33.1% of the total and Germany with 17.1%.
The Canary Islands are followed by Catalonia with 21.4%, making it the second main community in terms of tourist numbers. Catalonia welcomed a total of 924,464 tourists in February this year, marking an intense growth compared to 2022.
This means that 49.1% more tourists arrived in Catalonia in February than in the same month of 2022. Meanwhile, in terms of country of origin, 22% of visitors came from France and 8.1% from the United Kingdom.
The third place is taken by Andalusia, where 611,588 tourists were registered in February and an annual increase of 43.9 percent. The UK is the main country of origin with 19.2% of the total, followed by the Nordic countries with 11.3%.
In addition, in the first two months of 2023, the communities expecting the most tourists are the Canary Islands, with over 2.4 million and an increase of 40.9 percent compared to the same period in 2022, Catalonia with 1 .7 million and an increase of 58.9 percent and Andalusia with nearly 1.2 million, with 58.1 percent more.
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