Reyes Maroto: "The extraordinary recovery of international tourism in 2022 shows the strength of the sector and the effectiveness of the government's measures"

A total of 71.6 million international tourists visited Spain in 2022, spending 87.061 billion euros, up 86% and 95% respectively compared to 2019. The average stay of these travellers was 7.5 days in 2022, exceeding 7.1 days in 2019. The average spend of international tourists in Spain in 2022 was 10.5% higher than in 2019. This is reflected in the data from the surveys on Tourist Movements at Borders (Frontur) and Tourist Expenditure (Egatur), published today by the National Statistics Institute (INE).

For the Minister for Industry, Trade and Tourism, Reyes Maroto, "the data we know today confirms the strong recovery of the tourism sector in 2022. The expectations we had of recovering the majority of international tourists from before the pandemic have been fulfilled, but the most important thing is that spending and the average length of stay are growing, and this means an improvement in the quality and profitability of our sector. The strength of the sector in complex contexts such as those we are experiencing and the effectiveness of the measures adopted by the Government have been demonstrated. According to our forecasts, tourism will complete its recovery in 2023, again reaching record figures in terms of tourists and spending".

Average spend per traveller

Total tourism spend reached 87.061 billion euros, up 95% on 2019, but the average spend per traveller stood at 1,217 euros, 116 euros higher than in 2019.

With regard to the main markets, the increase in the Netherlands stands out, with a rise of 18.5% compared to pre-pandemic levels to over 4.904 billion euros in total spend. There was also a significant increase in spending by travellers from France (up 7.3%) to 8.149 billion euros.

Total spending by source country is headed by the United Kingdom (17.145 billion euros), followed by Germany (11.513 billion), France (8.149 billion), the Nordic countries (Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland); 5.959 billion), the United States (5.267 billion), the Netherlands (4.904 billion) and Italy (3.533 billion).

Tourist arrivals

The data also reflects a significant improvement in international tourist arrivals. In 2022, 71.6 million international tourists visited Spain, 86% more than in 2019.

The main source countries were the United Kingdom with 15.1 million tourists, France with 10.1 million, Germany (9.8 million), Italy (just over 4 million) and the Netherlands with 3.9 million. Dutch tourist arrivals last year were 6% higher than in 2019.

Arrivals by Autonomous Community of main destination and total spending in each of them are shown in the following table:

Non official translation