Spain Tourism Statistics

Page last updated: 11 November 2024

Spain, renowned for its diverse cultural heritage, coastal attractions, and historical landmarks, stands as one of the most tourist destinations in Europe.

How many tourists visit Spain each year?

Spain welcomed 85.1 million international tourists in 2023.¹

• In 2019, international tourists in Spain totalled 83.5 million. Due to the pandemic, tourism decreased to 18.9 million.
  
• 31.2 million international tourists visited Spain in 2021. 
  
• In 2022, the number of international tourists in Spain reached 71.7 million. This increased by 18.7% to 85.1 million in 2023.

How many tourists visited Spain in 2024?

• As of September 2024, Spain welcomed 73.9 million international visitors. Note: This is preliminary data from the Tourism official page of Spain and may change with future updates.

2024 International Visitors in Spain
Month	Total Visits (in million)
January	4,768,171
February	5,009,311
March	6,347,516
April	7,831,094
May	9,256,446
June	9,313,450
July	10,851,172
August	10,930,750
September	9,595,136

How many tourists visited Spain in 2023?

• Approximately 85.1 million international tourists visited Spain in 2023, exceeding the pre-pandemic year figure by 1.9%.²
  
  

How much do overseas visitors spend in Spain? 

In 2023, International tourists spent over $92 billion while visiting the wonders of Spain.

• In 2019, international tourists spent $79.57 billion in Spain, dropping to $18.38 billion in 2020 due to the pandemic. 

• Recovery began in 2021, with spending reaching $34.18 billion, rising to $72.1 billion in 2022, and reaching $92 billion in 2023 — a 16% increase over pre-pandemic levels.
  
  

How much did tourists spend in Spain in 2023?

• Approximately $92 billion was spent by international tourists while visiting Spain in 2023.
  
  

Which country visits Spain the most? 

In 2023, the United Kingdom was the leading source of tourists to Spain, with approximately 17.3 million visitors, an increase of 14.6% from the previous year.

• Followed by France with nearly 11.8 million tourists with an annual growth rate of 17%.
  
• In 2023, there were over 10.8 million German visitors, which represented a 10.6% increase from 2022.
  
• Both the Netherlands and Italy rounded out the top five, each sending approximately 4.9 million visitors.

Spain Inbound Travel Statistics – International & Domestic Tourism

• 2019 was a record year in terms of both international and domestic travel, with over 83.5 million international and 166 million domestic tourists.²

• These international tourists spent approximately 300 million on overnight stays in 2019, contributing to a total tourism expenditure of $79.57 billion.

• Domestic tourists spent over 395 million on domestic trips and over 137 million on overnight stays.²

How long do visitors stay in Spain?

• International tourists stayed an average of 7.6 days in Spain in 2023.
  
  

Spain Travel Resources

What are the top destinations to visit in Spain?

Catalonia was the most visited destination in Spain in 2023, welcoming 18 million tourists. It is a region where the renowned city of Barcelona resides.

• The Balearic Islands was the second-most-visited destination with 14.4 million visitors in 2023, offering a perfect escape with their pristine beaches and crystal-clear waters.

• Andalusia hosted 14.3 million tourists, enchanted by its Moorish heritage, flamenco dance, and the sun-soaked beaches of Costa del Sol.
  
• The Canary Islands attracted 13.9 million travellers, drawn by their diverse landscapes, ranging from lunar terrains to lush forests and dreamy beaches.
  
• The Valencian Community saw 12.3 million visitors in 2023, popular for its festival and coastal charm.

What are the reasons people visit Spain?

Both international and domestic tourists visited Spain primarily for holidays and leisure in 2023 with 79.8 million visits.

• Similarly, other personal reasons accounted for 8.5 million visits in 2022..³

• Visiting friends and relatives was the second most common reason, growing from 48.2 million in 2022 to 50 million in 2023.

• Business trips made up 6% of visits totalling 8.5 million.

Spain Outbound Tourism Statistics

Spain is not just a global destination but a source of outbound tourism, with about 19.8 million of its people travelling overseas in 2023.²

How many Spanish residents travel internationally?

• 15.8 million Spanish residents travelled internationally in 2022. This represented a 125% increase from the pandemic year of 2021.

How much do Spanish residents spend while travelling internationally?

• In 2023, Spanish travellers spent a total of $26.3 billion on overseas trips.
  
  

Where do people from Spain travel to?

The top outbound destinations for Spanish residents in 2022 were France (2.6 million visits), Portugal (2.4 million visits), Italy (1.9 million visits), the United Kingdom (1.5 million visits) and Germany (1 million visits).

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References

1. INE: Statistics of Tourist Movements in Borders (FRONTUR) ↩︎
2. UNWTO: Tourism Statistics – Global and Regional  ↩︎
3. EuroStats: Trips by Purpose ↩︎