Spain sets new tourism record with 58.1 million international arrivals

Spain welcomed 58.1 million international tourists between January and July 2026, marking a 4.6% increase from the same period a year earlier and setting a new record for visitor arrivals, EFE reports.

Tourism spending also reached an all-time high, rising 7.8% to €82.05 billion, according to Frontur and Egatur data published by Spain’s National Statistics Institute (INE).

The record-breaking trend continued in July, when Spain received 11.5 million international visitors, up 4.6% year on year. Spending by foreign tourists surged 10.9% to €18.22 billion.

The United Kingdom remained Spain’s largest source of international visitors during the first seven months, with 11.5 million arrivals, up 4.6%. France followed with more than 7.2 million visitors, an increase of 1.2%, while Germany accounted for around 6.9 million, down 0.5%.

Italy recorded the strongest growth among the major source markets, with 3.5 million tourists, representing a 10.3% increase from a year earlier. Arrivals from other countries rose 16.9% to 717,000, while spending by these visitors climbed 24.5%.

British tourists also led arrivals in July, with 2.2 million visitors, up 5.6% year on year. Their spending reached €3.04 billion, an annual increase of 4.8%.

Catalonia was Spain’s most visited autonomous community during the January-July period, attracting 11.94 million international tourists, up 2.9% year on year.

The Balearic Islands ranked second with 9.16 million visitors, up 1.8%, followed by the Canary Islands with 9.02 million, down 0.6%. Andalusia also recorded 9.02 million arrivals, representing an 8.2% increase.

Madrid and the Valencian Community posted the strongest growth among Spain’s major tourist destinations, with arrivals rising 9.6% and 8.9%, respectively.

In July, the Valencian Community welcomed 1.63 million international tourists, up 9.5%, while Madrid recorded 800,000 visitors, an 11% increase.

Most international tourists stayed in Spain for four to seven nights, while around 8.5 million travelled without package tours, compared with 3.1 million who booked package holidays.

Accommodation accounted for the largest share of tourist expenditure at 19.8%, followed by package tours at 19.3% and international transport at 19.2%.

By Vafa Guliyeva