To get better. This is the word that summarizes the behavior of the tourism sector in Spain in 2023, when the image of closed hotels and streets empty of tourists has been erased due to the pandemic. Industry and Tourism Minister Jordi Hereu announced two weeks ago that the country had exceeded 84 million international passengers, above the figure reached in 2019 (83.7 million). Beyond classical sun and beach tourism, the sector, which broke all records in revenue, visitor and per capita expenditure, is turning its sights to Turkey. consolidation of others Trends gaining importance in the sector. Spain is attracting more and more disabled people, as well as medical tourists, many of whom are seeking fertility treatment or some form of plastic surgery treatment. It also wants to position itself as a ‘Muslim-friendly’ country for Muslim visitors. Finally, the country is trying to entice foreign athletes who prefer to take part in a cyclocross competition or visit a city in advance before taking part in a marathon.
Of all, Health tourism is the most established tourism. These are trips taken by tourists with relatively higher spending capacity, who add to the bill a high expenditure for very special treatments as well as transportation costs. International visitors to Spain in 2022 (latest data collected in the tourist expenditure survey by INE), Average expenditure per person is 1,536 EurosThis figure is 26% more than the average of 1,214 euros for all foreign travelers who visited the country the previous year. While a health tourist spends 214 euros per day, all visitors spend an average of 162 euros per day. Barcelona stands out as the preferred destination for such travelers, especially for its expertise in fertility: more than 300 specialist clinics are currently foreign-based and offer LGTBI fertility options. Valencia is following closely. Requests to start fertility treatments in this city have increased by 22 percent in the last two years.
aesthetic medicine Also, have a sweet memory. If it was full-quarantine video calls that led to increased interest in minor aesthetic tweaks in 2021, now it’s influence of social networks Those who promote this type of tourism. British, Germans, Russians and Saudis come to Spain due to its competitive prices compared to other countries, except for Turkey, which is the capital and the new center of global health tourism for dental treatments. The plastic surgery market in Spain grew by 15% in 2022, reaching a bill of 4,025 million euros, thanks to the increase in breast surgeries (52.6%) and head-related interventions (23.7%).
inclusive tourism
Approximately 4.38 million people in Spain have some form of disability that does not prevent them from enjoying travel, although travel conditions are not always guaranteed. According to the FituNext 2023 Report prepared by the ONCE Foundation’s Universal Accessibility Tourism Observatory in Spain, These tourists spend 28% more than others To guarantee your needs. On average, each person spent €813.65 on their last getaway, choosing to travel in their own car (67%) and the Valencian Community to relax on its beaches (24%). “More and more disabled people are coming to Spain because it is a reference point in terms of accessibility,” says Jesús Hernández, Director of Accessibility and Innovation at the ONCE Foundation. And since it is a country with “a great climate that can attract older people with accessible services,” among other things, there is a tendency for the numbers to increase further in the long term.
Of course, there are still some problems to be solved. The most urgent thing is Improving the quality of transportation serviceespecially on flights and accessible taxis for people with reduced mobility. If air transportation adapts to these needs, Spain will receive more attention from this sector. There is no improvement in care for disabled people in the rail sector. And on a general level, “education needs to be improved to be able to serve people with these needs,” an issue that cross-cuts the entire tourism industry.
Adapting the tourist offer to the dictates of a religion such as Islam is also a way to attract these visitors. ‘Halal’ tourism (Arabic for permissible or healthy) is tourism that respects the needs of Muslim tourists, such as dress codes or gastronomic rules contained in Islam. The end of the pandemic and the increase in the number of tourists from the Middle East and Southeast Asia, especially Indonesia and Malaysia, increases the importance of this trend, which is increasingly taken into account by Spanish restaurants and tour operators. Spain It ranked seventh in the list of non-member countries of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in 2023 and seventh a year ago. Recognized as the best growing Muslim-friendly destination of the year.
The country is like this It recovered pre-pandemic data with the arrival of more than 2 million Muslim tourists. Just 14 years ago, this figure only reached half a million tourists. “Spain is one of the destinations with the greatest potential due to its historical heritage, both in terms of heritage and Arabic cuisine, as well as the knowledge gained in a sector that is of vital importance for our country,” draws attention from the Halal Institute. According to figures compiled by INE, in 2022 each Muslim tourist spent an average of 1,912 euros and traveled mainly to Andalusia, Madrid and Catalonia. More than 500 Spanish tourist establishments have a ‘halal’ certificate, certifying that their services and products respect Islam; This is another example of the positive development of this type of tourism in Spain.
sports trips
Playing sports and watching sports are also a rising tourism trend in Spain. Spanish and foreign tourists in total A total of 5,553.9 million euros were spent on those traveling to the country for sports purposes in 2022According to the Sports Statistics Yearbook prepared by the Ministry of Culture and Sports, it is more than double the previous year. More than half of these expenditures (3,456.8 million) were allocated to sports tourism. For example, it is expected that 2.5 million tourists will come to the Copa América 2024 to be held in Barcelona this year, and 54 thousand tourists to the Formula 1 Madrid GP to be held in 2026.
Other tourists choose to participate in tests. The latest sporting event is the UCI Cyclocross World Cup – Benidorm Costa Blanca, which attracted 15,000 fans. There are many people who pre-arrange their trips by writing the main marathons in a calendar at the beginning of the year or come to Spain for a week of golf. In this last case, the Association of Spanish Golf Courses reminds that 63% of international visitors are high and medium-high income earners, Spain is the preferred destination for golf players in Europe, and the average expenditure of each tourist is 324 euros per person. day. Sports tourism is also an opportunity for a deseasonalized business model in Spain, allowing redistribution of visitors throughout the year and territorial expansion.