More tourists in Catalonia this July than before Covid

Tourism has come back swinging now that most pandemic restrictions have been lifted: in July, more visitors came to Catalonia than in the same month in 2019.

According to figures released by Spain's National Statistics Institute (INE) on Thursday, Catalonia welcomed just under 2.5 million tourists last month, more than 1.5 times more than the same month a year earlier and a 1.4% increase on pre-Covid July 2019.

A large part of the sector's recovery can be attributed to the return of international visitors: 1.51 million this July compared to the 584,000 that arrived in July 2021. 

However, although there were more tourists than in 2019, there were fewer overnight stays: 7.86 million this year versus 8.16 million three years ago. 

Catalonia was the second-most popular destination in Spain behind the Balearic Islands, while within Catalonia, around half of all visitors traveled to the Barcelona area. 

1 million tourists in Barcelona

A million people, the equivalent of 3/5 of its population, visited Barcelona a month ago - more than in 2021 but still 12.7% below the record-high figure seen in 2019.

82% of these tourists were from abroad, while hotels, hostels, and tourist apartments reported a total of 3 million overnight stays.

From January to July, the Catalan capital welcomed 5.4 million visitors, 900,000 more than the same period a year earlier.