Between January and August, 13 million Britons visited Spain, a rise of 4.3 per cent year-on-year
MADRID – More British holidaymakers visited Spain this year despite a slowdown in the tourism industry because operators have a close relationship with the UK, according to an analyst.
Weaker spending by French, German and US visitors in 2025 means the tourism sector’s contribution to this year’s economic growth will be less than expected, industry group Exceltur said.
Exceltur now expects all tourism-related activity in the world’s second most-visited country to grow by 2.8 per cent in 2025, down from the 3.3 per cent growth it estimated in July, and down from a 5.5 per cent expansion last year.
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The group estimated that the tourism industry will contribute 13.1 per cent to Spain’s gross domestic product this year, below its initial estimate of 13.5 per cent.
However, between January and August, 13 million Britons visited Spain, a rise of 4.3 per cent year-on-year. Britons are the largest group of visitors by nationality, representing 26.5 per cent of all holidaymakers.
Javier Pascuet, a consultant specialising in sustainable tourism, innovation and smart destinations, said the British kept coming to Spain because they saw it as a safe destination with guaranteed sunshine and beaches.
“The strength and networks of the tour operators is super important. I have seen so many advertisements saying buy now, pay later. So when they are financing your holiday for free, that is very important,” he said.
Pascuet said overtourism protests had not put people off visiting places like Mallorca or Barcelona.
“[The protesters] are not complaining about tourism; they are complaining that tourism is making the prices of real estate go up. Brits and Germans can come and buy but we are not making enough [money],” he said.
Pascuet stressed that he believed for Britons a summer holiday is “non-negotiable” and this was helped by the fact that the pound has maintained its strength against the euro.
“Spain is very familiar to people. Most people want to find a safe and close destination. The pound is holding on, the dollar is not. People know what they are getting, which is fairly good with a reasonable price,” he said.
“Spain is so easy and just three clicks away. And you know, Jet2 and they speak in English. Some people are coming for cultural or gastronomic or sport or something, but mainstream tourism is still so strong.”
Oscar Perelli, vice president of industry group Exceltur, told a news conference on Tuesday that the tourism sector will no longer exceed Spain’s economic growth projection of 2.6 per cent.
The number of international tourists may fall short of the 100 million projected by the World Travel and Tourism Council earlier this year.
Last year, Spain registered a record 94 million tourists. By August this year, 66.8 million tourists had arrived, up 3.9 per cent from the same period a year ago.