Tourism up in Catalonia with increased spend

Catalonia welcomed 6.8% more tourists in April than 12 months earlier, according to the Spanish statistics institute.

More than 1.6 million people visited the country, making Catalonia the most popular destination in Spain with almost a quarter of the total visitors (23.4%).

Overall, 4.9 million people traveled to Catalan destinations between January and April, 4.8% more than in 2018, and around 100,000 more than the second top tourist hotspot in Spain, the Canary Islands.

1,000 euros per tourist

Foreign visitors spent 1.65 billion euros in Catalonia during the fourth month of this year, roughly equivalent to 1,000 euros each and a 9.4% increase compared to the same period in 2018.

One in four visitors in April crossed the border from France (24.4%).

4.6 million nights booked

Some 4.67 million nights of accommodation were booked for the average price of 94.68 euros.

Overnight stays went up by 10% compared to April 2018, particularly as a result of the timing of Easter.