The number of international tourists visiting Spain in August rose 69.7% year-on-year, to 8.8 million, already 15 straight months on the rise, according to data provided by the National Institute of Statistics (INE) this Tuesday.
However, previous figures for the coronavirus pandemic were not reached, with 10.1 million foreign tourists arriving in Spain in August 2019.
As for spending, it amounted to 11,258 million euros, up 90.6% from the previous year, and 3.8% less than in August 2019, with an average per capita disbursement of 1,276 euros, up 12.3% from the same month in 2021.
When it comes to the countries of origin of international tourists, the UK was the main country of residence, with more than 1.8 million tourists, representing 20.8% of the total, and an increase of 157, 1% compared to August 2021.
It is followed by France with 1.6 million, 27.1% more, and Germany with 1.1 million, 62.8% more.
In its note, the National Institute of Statistics also highlights the increase in tourists from Ireland (106.7%), Italy (106.4%) and the United States (96.8%).
Between January and August, 48.1 million foreigners arrived in Spain, compared to 15.1 million in August 2021, which represents an increase of 220.2%.
The main sending countries in the first eight months of 2022 were the United Kingdom, with about 10.2 million tourists and an annual increase of 560.8%; France is about 7.0 million, up 108.6%, and Germany is 6.5 million, or 156.8% more.
The Balearic Islands were the main destination for tourists in August with 24.8% of the total, followed by Catalonia (21.4%) and Andalusia (14.6%).
Nearly 2.2 million tourists arrived in the Balearic Islands, up 67.2% from August 2021, mainly from Germany (28.1% of the total) and the United Kingdom (26.2%).
In Catalonia, the number of tourists grew by 75.6% to nearly 1.9 million; Of these, 29.7% come from France and 11.3% from the rest of Europe.
The third main destination in terms of the number of tourists was Andalusia with about 1.3 million, with an annual increase of 83.9%. In this case, the UK is the main country of origin with 23.2% of the total, followed by France with 14.5%.
Regarding other autonomy, the number of tourists increased by 93.4% in the Community of Madrid, 81.9% in the Canary Islands and 40.4% in the Valencian Community.
In the first eight months of 2022, Catalonia were the communities that received the largest number of tourists (with nearly 9.9 million and an increase of 245% over the same period in 2021); The Balearic Islands, 9.6 million and an increase of 148.7%, and the Canary Islands, by more than 7.8 million, 349.6% more.
The average travel time for international tourists in August was 7.9 days, which is 0.5 days less than in August 2021.
In the first eight months of the year, total spending by international tourists increased by 247.5% compared to the same period in the previous year, reaching 58,895 million euros.
The main exporting countries in terms of spending level in August are the United Kingdom (20.5% of the total), France (14.4%) and Germany (11.7%).
Resident tourist spending in the UK grew 169.2% on an annual basis, France by 36.2% and Germany by 72.4%.
