Tourists defy protests and set new records in Spain
Tens of Thousands of Spaniards are taking to the streets in many regions against the growing hordes of tourists. However, they cannot be deterred and tourists continue to travel in large numbers to Mallorca and others. Germany, however, is not at the forefront of foreign tourist origins.
Spain achieved a record number of hotel overnight stays in the first half of 2024 despite a significant increase in room prices. Between January 1 and June 30, the number of overnight stays increased by 7.5 percent compared to the previous year to 160.6 million, according to the Statistics Office INE. The average room price in June 2024 was around 8 percent higher than in the previous month. Hotels made an average revenue of around 122 Euros per occupied room in June.
Visitor numbers in Spain have been rising rapidly for many years before the Corona pandemic caused a pause. However, a new record is being chased again since 2022. For the new record high in overnight stays, foreign guests were again primarily responsible for an increase of 11.2 percent. The number of overnight stays of domestic customers, however, only increased by 0.9 percent in the first half of the year.
The INE had reported an increase in foreign visitor numbers of 13.6 percent to a new record of over 33.2 million for the first five months of the year. The Germans were in third place behind the British (around 6.3 million) with nearly 4.4 million.
The popular holiday destination has recently been in the headlines due to the increasingly frequent demonstrations against mass tourism. Last Sunday, thousands took to the streets on Mallorca to protest against excesses. The regional government promised "bold measures" to solve the problems, for which mass tourism is held responsible. Details were not mentioned in Palma. Anger is also growing in other popular tourist destinations in Spain such as Barcelona, Málaga, or on the Canary Islands. Above all, the housing shortage, but also jams, noise, and dirt are causing frustration among the locals.
The record-breaking hotel overnight stays in Spain during the first half of 2024 primarily stemmed from an 11.2% increase in foreign guests. Despite this, widespread protests against mass tourism continue, with Thousands in Mallorca and other popular destinations like Barcelona, Málaga, and the Canary Islands voicing their concerns about issues such as the housing shortage, traffic, noise, and litter.
