Spain received a record 85.1 million international tourists in 2023, 19% more than the year before, according to the latest figures from the National Statistics Agency (INE) has said.
The number of foreign visitors in 2023 surpassed the 83.5 million who went to Spain in 2019, the year before the COVID-19 pandemic ruled out most leisure travel.
The UK, France and Germany sent the highest number of tourists to Spain last year.
The INE also said Spain’s income from foreign tourists reached 108.7 billion euros in 2023, an increase of 25% from the previous year. Tourism accounts for 12% of Spain’s gross domestic product.
Catalonia, including Barcelona, followed by the Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean and the Canary Islands off North Africa were the top destinations.
France, Spain and the United States have been the world’s three top tourist destinations for many years.
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