Spain hotel stays have surged to record highs in the first half of the year, marking an extraordinary increase of 7.5% compared to the same period in 2023.
According to the National Institute of Statistics (INE), a staggering 160.6 million hotel stays were recorded between January and June, with prices rising nearly 8% from last year.
Overnight stays by foreign visitors soared by an impressive 11.2%, led predominantly by Britons.
In stark contrast, stays by Spanish residents saw a modest increase of 0.9%. June alone witnessed over 38.2 million hotel stays, a 5.4% rise compared to June 2023. During June 2024, the number of stays by travelers resident in Spain grew by 0.3%, while non-resident stays surged by 8%.
Andalusia, Catalonia, and the Valencian Community emerged as the top destinations for Spanish residents, capturing 21.4%, 15.6%, and 13% of the total overnight stays, respectively.
For non-residents, the Balearic Islands, Catalonia, and the Canary Islands were the preferred choices, accounting for 33.6%, 19.3%, and 18.3% of total stays.
Tourists from the United Kingdom and Germany were the most prominent, representing 28.7% and 17.9% of all non-resident overnight stays in June. Following them were visitors from France (6.9%), the United States (5.2%), and the Netherlands (4.7%).
Hotel prices in June 2024 saw a notable increase of 7.8% compared to June 2023, contributing to a cumulative rise of 20% since the start of the year. The Community of Madrid recorded the largest price hike at 18.3%, while prices in the autonomous city of Melilla fell by 2.5%.
Mallorca stood out with the highest number of overnight stays among tourist areas, exceeding 7.2 million. Barcelona, Madrid, and Calvià were the top tourist spots by volume.
The overall occupancy rate in June reached 65.5%, a 3.7% annual increase, with weekend occupancy rates climbing to 71.1%.
The Balearic Islands boasted the highest occupancy rate by destinatiob in June (81.1%), while Mallorca led among tourist areas with an 82.2% occupancy rate.
Palma Calvià had the highest weekend occupancy rate at 84.9%, and Alcudia reached the peak occupancy rate by destinations at 92%.
Llucmajor recorded the highest weekend occupancy rate, also at 92%.
