Total spending by international tourists in March 2026 amounted to €9.6 billion, 5.4% more than in March of the previous year, according to data published by the National Statistics Institute (INE).
As for the number of international tourists who arrived in Spain in March, the figure exceeded 6.8 million, representing a 3.3% increase compared to the same period of the previous year.
These March figures confirm a first quarter in which the trend of spending growing faster than the rate of arrivals continues. In the first three months of the year, international tourist spending exceeded €25 billion, a 6.3% increase compared to the first quarter of 2025. In terms of arrivals, the total for January, February, and March reached 17.5 million, a 2.5% increase.
In March 2026, the United Kingdom accounted for the largest share of total spending (14.9%), with spending remaining unchanged. Germany followed (13.4% of the total), with spending increasing by 0.1% that month, and the Nordic countries (8.1% of the total), which saw a 0.5% decrease. In terms of overall spending, the "rest of the world" category stood out in March, with expenditures growing by 10.5%.
On the other hand, the autonomous communities with the highest share of tourist spending in March were the Canary Islands (25.8% of the total), Andalusia (17.7%), and Catalonia (17%).
In terms of visitors, the main countries of origin in March were the United Kingdom (with almost 1.3 million tourists, a 2.1% increase compared to the same period in 2025); Germany (924,088 tourists, a 2.9% increase); and France (798,671 tourists, a 4.4% increase).
Spending continues to outpace visitor growth
In March, the increase in spending by international tourists was 2.1 percentage points higher than the increase in the number of foreign visitors. This continues a trend that has been ongoing for several years and shows no signs of slowing down.
During this month, each tourist spent an average of €1,411, representing a 2.1% increase compared to March of the previous year. The average daily expenditure of visitors grew by 4.8% year-on-year to €198.
Meanwhile, the length of stay of the majority of tourists was four to seven nights, with almost 3.4 million and an annual increase of 4.1%. In addition, more than 5.3 million tourists travelled independently in March, a 3.9% increase.
The Canary Islands, top destination in March
The Canary Islands was the leading destination for tourists in March, accounting for 22.9% of the total. In second and third places were Catalonia (19.1%) and Andalusia (17.1%), respectively.
The Canary Islands received 1,562,334 tourists, 0.4% more than in March 2025; Catalonia received 1,298,043, a 5.4% decrease; and Andalusia received 1,167,746, a 10.8% increase.
In the rest of Spain's autonomous communities, the overall number of international visitors increased by 2.2% in the third month of the year, exceeding 600,000.
Non official translation
Burgo de Osma (Soria)