Foreign tourism to Spain beats pre-COVID record in 2023, seen rising

MADRID (Reuters) – Spain received a record number of foreign tourists in 2023, 17% more than a year earlier and a 1% increase from the 84 million who came in the pre-pandemic year of2019, Tourism Minister Jordi Hereu said, also predicting a strong first quarter of this year.

“All in all, 2023 has been a very positive year and a record year … we are still on the same path to prosperity,” he told a news conference, expecting 23.2 million foreign visitors in the first quarter, 11% more than a a year ago.

International visitors spent 108 billion euros ($117.47 billion) in Spain, one of the world’s most visited countries, last year, 17% more than in 2019, the last year before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Hereu said destination spending was likely to increase by over 18% in the first quarter.

($1 = 0.9194 euros)