Spain’s tourism sector continues to demonstrate strength and resilience. In the third quarter of 2025, the number of people employed in tourism-related activities reached 3,085,831, marking a 2.2% increase compared with the same period in 2024. This represents 66,768 additional workers, according to data from the Labour Force Survey (EPA) analysed by Turespaña.

Tourism accounted for 13.8% of total national employment between July and September, reaffirming its key role in the Spanish economy. The unemployment rate in tourism stood at 7.5%, well below the national average of 10.5%.

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Tourism employment surpasses 3 million, rising 2.2% in the third quarter of 2025

More salaried and full-time workers
The number of salaried employees in the tourism sector rose to 2,643,063, up 3.6% year-on-year — the 17th consecutive quarter of growth. The employee-to-worker ratio climbed to 85.7%, showing a higher degree of labour formalisation in the sector.
Permanent contracts increased by 4%, while temporary ones grew by 2.1%. Moreover, 78% of employees now work full-time, a 1.9% increase over the previous year.

Sectoral performance
Although hospitality recorded a slight decline of 1.6%, mainly due to a 3.4% drop in food and beverage services, other areas showed positive results. Travel agencies expanded their workforce by 8.7%, and passenger transport employment rose by 0.3%.

Conversely, self-employed workers in tourism fell by 5.4%, with notable decreases in hospitality (-9.2%) and transport (-11.6%), offset by a 13.4% rise in other tourism-related activities.

Andalusia leads regional growth
Employment in tourism increased in ten autonomous communities, led by Andalusia (+16%), followed by Madrid (+8.6%), Canary Islands (+4.1%), Valencia (+3.2%), and Balearic Islands (+0.7%). Catalonia was the only major region to experience a decline, down 11.9% year-on-year.