Visitors leave 1,257 euros in Spain for their holidays, almost 200 euros more per person than in 2019, although the total expenditure remains 15% below
In the month of March alone, 4 million foreign tourists arrived in Spain, which already represents 71% of those who landed in our country in the same month of 2019, before the pandemic broke out. And they spent more than then: an average of 1,257 euros each, almost 200 euros more than the 1,068 euros in March 2019.
And average daily spending grows by 20% to 157 euros, and that the average duration of international tourist trips is 8 days, 0.5 less than in March 2021, according to data published by the INE on Thursday. That is 7 euros more per day than what they spent in March 2019.
Still, total spending remains 15% below the 2019 level, but already above 5,000 million. In concrete terms, the total turnover amounted to 5,069 million euros, which represents an increase of no less than 830% compared to the same month of 2021, although it must be taken into account that at that time there were still exit restrictions in some countries due to the pandemic.
Tourism Minister Reyes Maroto explained in a statement that this trend will “intensify” in the summer period, with results that “make us optimistic”, such as the planned air capacity on international flights from April to June, which will increase the 29 million seats. exceeds .
In total for the year, total visitor spending increased by almost 800% compared to last year, to 11,853 million euros, 3,500 million less than in the first quarter of 2019.
Of the 4 million foreign tourists who arrived in Spain in March, the majority were British. A country that, after leaving restrictions, has recovered its pre-pandemic level. In March, 826,400 British tourists, 18% of the total, arrived and spent €1,013 million in Spain, 20% of the total.
In the first three months of the year, the number of tourists increased by almost 700% compared to the first quarter of 2021, reaching almost 9.7 million visitors, compared to just 1.2 million last year.
After the United Kingdom, German and French tourists visited our country the most, with 608,800 and 457,000 arrivals respectively. In the other countries the growth compared to last year is striking in Ireland (+2,500%), the United States (1,900%) and the Scandinavian countries (1,300%).
The main destinations of these tourists were the Canary Islands (33% of total spending in March and 1.1 million visitors), Andalusia (15% of total spending and 610,000 people) and Catalonia (14.5% of total spending and 703,000 tourists).
Paradores has recovered its occupancy and revenue after two years of pandemic. The hotel chain sold a total of 352,652 rooms in the first four months of the year, generating a turnover of 71.8 million euros in addition to the restaurants, 11.5% more than in the same period of 2019.
Paradores president Pedro Saura stressed in a statement on Thursday that these “good numbers” are the result of a “vigorous recovery” in demand, both national and international, for more attractive offerings of tourism products and experiences.
This recovery trend was somewhat interrupted by the omicron variant and by the onset of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, but was reinforced at Easter, with an average occupancy of more than 88%, and the long weekend of May, with an occupancy of 73% .
Paradores has stated that the return to pre-pandemic levels will allow them to keep their accounts sound and, together with European funds, to execute their investment plans, both in the preservation and maintenance of sites and in projects aimed at the development of “sustainable, digitized and affordable tourism”. experiences”.
Paradores closed the year 2021 with a net profit of 3 million euros with a total of 1.08 rooms sold, more than expected.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
