New highs. Spain received a total of 85.1 million international tourists in 2023, who spent 108,662 million euros, according to data published this Friday by the INE. The record figures confirm the data advanced a couple of weeks ago by the Minister of Industry and Tourism, Jordi Hereu.
The sector is consolidating itself as one of the main drivers of the economy, although it aims to grow in higher quality segments and in new origins. Quality over quantity.
In any case, today the photo shows that foreign visitors grow by 18.7% compared to 2022. They exceed the previous record figure of 83.5 million entries in 2019, the year before the pandemic, by 1.9%.
Catalonia was the autonomous community that received the most tourists, followed by the Balearic Islands and the Canary Islands. 18 million tourists arrived in Catalonia (21.2% more), 14.4 million in the Balearic Islands (9.1% more) and 13.9 million in the Canary Islands (13.1% more).
Regarding spending, the 108,662 million represent 24.7% more than the previous year (87,061 million) and 18.2% more than in 2019 (91,912 million). The country that spent the most was the United Kingdom, with 19,947 million euros, 16.3% more than in 2023. They were followed by Germany (with 12,978 million and an increase of 12.6%) and France (with 9,767 million, a 19.7% more).
Once again, Catalonia was where they spent the most, with 20,878 million, 26.7% more than in 2022. The Canary Islands (with 20,334 million and an increase of 16.5%) and the Balearic Islands (with 17,722 million, 16.4 % more than in 2022), were placed below.
