In October, passengers arriving in Spain from international airports amounted to 9 million, 13.4% more than in the same month of 2022, according to data released by Turespaña.

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Spain received 82.2 million international passengers

Between January and October, Spain received 82.2 million international passengers registering an increase of 18.4% compared to the same period of 2022. Compared to the same pre-pandemic period, in 2019, arrivals are slightly down by just 0.6%.

For the acting Minister of Industry, Trade and Tourism, Héctor Gómez, “the increase in the arrival of travellers outside what was considered the high season is great news for the deseasonalization of our tourism, which also sees how destinations are diversifying and more and more Autonomous Communities are experiencing increases in the flow of tourists outside the summer months”.

In October, passengers to Spain increased in all the main issuing countries and all markets showed notable increases, with notable growth of more than 17% in Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal and Ireland. Thus, Italy experienced a year-on-year growth of 20.7%, the Netherlands 18.1%, Portugal 18% and Ireland 17.7%.

The United Kingdom, with just over 2 million international passengers, generated 22.4% of the total flow of arrivals to Spain in October, registering a year-on-year increase of 10.4%. The Balearic and Canary Islands were the communities that received the highest flow of arrivals, since between them they accounted for 46.2% of the British arrivals to our country. Green Spain (Galicia, Cantabria, Asturias and the Basque Country) showed notable increases of over 10%. The Mediterranean communities and Madrid also experienced increases of over 10%.

Passenger arrivals from Germany reached nearly 1.4 million in October (15% of the total) and increased by 11.4%, mainly going to the Balearic Islands (41% of passengers) and experiencing notable increases in the rest of the communities bathed by the sea except Galicia.

Italy accounted for 9.2% of the flow of passengers received in October (nearly 830,276 travellers), registering a year-on-year growth of 20.7%, which especially benefited Catalonia and the Community of Madrid. The largest year-on-year increase for this market was experienced by the Basque Country, with a 244% increase in arrivals of travellers of this nationality.

France issued 8% of total passengers in October, showing an expansion of 6.4%, especially favouring Madrid, which accounted for 26.4% of arrivals. Also noteworthy were the year-on-year increases in Asturias, the Basque Country and the Valencian Community.

The Netherlands accounted for 5.2% of total arrivals. This market experienced a growth of 18.1% in October, with Catalonia and the Valencian Community as the main destinations, together accounting for 40% of arrivals.

Autonomous Communities of Destination
The six main Autonomous Communities accounted for 96.8% of arrivals and experienced notable increases. The largest year-on-year increase -of 22.6%- came from the Community of Valencia, followed by Andalusia, with 17.7%.

The Community of Madrid received the most arrivals, with 1.9 million, followed by Catalonia, with 1.8 million. With 1.4 million is the Balearic Islands and, in fourth place, the Canary Islands, with 1.2 million.

In the cumulative figure up to October, Catalonia and Madrid are the two communities with the highest growth in the arrival of travelers (22.8% in both), followed by Valencia, with 22.6%.

More than half, of Europeans
In October, 57.6% of the total number of passengers came from the European Union, an increase of 14.5%, while the flow from the rest of the world, which accounted for the remaining 42.4%, grew by 12%.

Airports with the most arrivals
Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas airport received the most arrivals in October, with 1.9 million, followed by Barcelona, with 1.6 million, and Palma de Mallorca, with 1.1 million. The largest year-on-year increase was at Valencia airport, with a 29.1% increase, followed by Alicante, with 19.4%.

From January to October 2023, the airports with the highest increases are Valencia, with a 27.8% increase, Barcelona, 23.3%, and Madrid, 22.8%.