Tourism in Spain

Tourism is an important economic factor for Spain. According to the World Tourism Organization, the country in 2010 was the fourth most popular holiday destination in the world ( after France, the U.S. and China). This year the number of tourist visitors was around 52 million .. 2007, the number of foreign tourists in Spain stood at 61.6 million.

2011 began with an increase in visitor numbers by 4.7 percent, and in particular the Canary Islands. This was due to the conflicts in the Arab world.

Based on the countries occupied in 2010 the British with almost 24% of all tourists the top spot, followed by the Germans, with almost 17%. Close behind ranked the French with 15 % to third place. In absolute numbers, 2010 was attended by around 9 million German Spain.

2002 amounted to more than 11.6 million customers ( 15.2 % compared to 2001 ), the Catalonia region in the favor of international tourists at the top. Another very popular holiday destination questioned the Canary Islands in 2002 ( -1.8 % compared to 2001 ). Other areas of tourist interest are bordering on the Mediterranean Autonomous regions, including Andalusia, the Balearic Islands and Valencia. For city breaks in particular the cities Madrid, Barcelona and Santiago de Compostela are popular.

Spain is also popular as a destination for Courses. In 2005, approximately 171 000 students in Spain and stayed an average of 6.5 weeks to graduate their language course.