Spain is on track for another record-breaking summer tourism season, with the government forecasting about 43 million international arrivals between June and September—around 6% more than during the same period last year.
According to Industry and Tourism Minister Jordi Hereu, international visitor spending is expected to approach €64 billion (about US$75 billion) over the four-month period, representing a 10% increase compared with summer 2025. The stronger growth in spending than arrivals reflects Spain‘s ongoing strategy of attracting higher-value tourism rather than simply increasing visitor numbers.
The forecasts support the objectives of the country’s Tourism Spain 2030 strategy, which aims to improve tourism’s economic value while addressing growing concerns over overtourism in many of Spain’s most popular destinations.
A central pillar of the plan is to encourage travelers to explore lesser-known regions, helping spread tourism demand more evenly across the country and reduce pressure on hotspots such as Barcelona, the Balearic Islands, the Canary Islands, Málaga and parts of the Mediterranean coast.
The positive outlook follows a strong start to 2026. Through May, the latest month with official figures available, Spain welcomed more than 36 million international visitors, a 5% year-over-year increase. International tourism spending reached €50.2 billion (about US$59 billion), up 7.8% compared with the same period last year.
Despite continuing geopolitical uncertainty, including tensions in the Middle East that have affected parts of the global travel industry, Hereu said Spain’s tourism transformation remains firmly on course. He described the country’s tourism sector as showing “extraordinary resilience.”
Spain continues to rank as one of the world’s tourism powerhouses. In 2025, it welcomed 96.8 million international visitors, up 3.2% from 2024, making it the world’s second most visited country after France. International tourism receipts reached €134.7 billion (approximately US$158 billion), an increase of 6.8%, accounting for 12.6% of Spain’s GDP.
The United Kingdom remained Spain’s largest international source market in 2025 with 19 million visitors, followed by France with 12.7 million and Germany with 12 million, according to Spain’s National Statistics Institute (INE).
