Spanish tourism bounces back with 71 million visitors in 2022

The government of Spain has recorded a sharp rebound in the country’s tourism sector post-COVID, as travel restrictions continued to be relaxed last year.

According to Tourism Minister Reyes Maroto, Spain welcomed about 71 million tourists in 2022. 

While this figure was, however, still less than recorded figures for 2019 — when Spain had an unprecedented 83.5 million visitors according to research carried out by the National Statistics Institute (INE) — total tourist spend and duration of stay rose higher than pre-pandemic levels.

“The tourism sector is regaining its vigor and providing not only an important economic impact but also a social and territorial one,” Maroto told reporters in Rabat, Morocco, on Wednesday, where a delegation led by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez traveled to meet and engage in talks with the Moroccan government.

In her speech, Minister Maroto added that the government of Spain is determined to transition its tourism model towards sustainability and digitalization with the help of the European Union.

She further confirmed that tourists visiting Spain in 2022 spent about €87 billion ($94.8 billion).

In 2021, 31 million tourists visited Spain in the wake of the government’s easing of COVID restrictions. 

In the previous year, 2020, only 19 million tourists visited Spain, the lowest figure since 1969. Then, the pandemic greatly impacted international travel, according to INE data.

“2023 is again going to be extraordinary, despite the context of the war and the uncertainties linked to inflation and energy costs,” Maroto said.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, Spain was the world’s favourite tourist destination after France. Spanish tourism currently represents about 12% of the country’s GDP.

Occupying the greater part of Europe’s Iberian Peninsula, Spain has several beautiful coastlines and beaches where tourists and holidaymakers often flock. The country is also home to numerous historic buildings spread across its two most popular cities: capital city Madrid and Barcelona, both of which remain choice destinations for international tourists.

 

Similar Read: Portuguese tourism bounces back from COVID with €22 billion revenue

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Zalah Khan
Zalah is LLB Graduate from the University of Westminster and joined the hopdes team in June 2022. She has been a linguistics expert and interpreter for a few years at Pearl Linguistics in London dealing with people mostly from the middle-east side. She loves the thrills and adventures embedded deeply into her genes owing to her biracial Pashtun and Persian heritage. She speaks Urdu, Arabic, Persian, Pashtu and English. Whilst she is afraid of heights but her adrenaline pushes her to take the 60-foot leap of faith body slide everytime she is at the Aqua Venture Water Park in Dubai. She recently went onto the Jebel Jais Flight at speeds of up to 150km/h (93mph) along a 2.8km (1.7-mile) cable weighing more than six tonnes. She was last seen at the Museum Of Illusions at the Dubai Creek.

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