Drop in number of tourists, but rise in spending

Tourists in Catalonia dropped in numbers in May but spent more money than the ones visiting in the same month last year. According to Frontur, which publishes tourist figures from the state statistics office, there was a slight 2.4% dip in the number of foreign tourists to the country compared with last May, to 1,874,676 people. However, they spent a total of 1.91 billion euros in Catalonia, some 5.2% more than twelve months before.

Cumulatively for the first five months of this year, a total of 6,529,377 foreign visitors came to Catalonia, a 2.1% drop compared with the same period in 2017, say the figures. Yet the trend of this month is the same for the whole 2018: despite being less, visitors have spent 6.53 billion euros, which means 6.7% more money than the same period in 2017.

Most popular destination in Spain

In the fifth month of the year, Catalonia was the main destination in the whole of Spain for foreign tourists, with 23.2% of all visitors, which was closely followed by the Balearic Islands, which accounted for 21.1% of people from abroad. Most of the visitors coming to Catalonia were from France (23.1%). The average spending by international tourists in Catalonia in May was 1,021 euros, some 7.8% more than last year, which works out as an average daily spend of 201 euros, as visitors spend on average five days in the country.