The total spending of international tourists in January 2026 reached €7.8 billion, marking a 9.3% increase compared to the same month in 2025, according to the National Statistics Institute (INE). Over 5.1 million international tourists arrived in Spain during the first month of the year, representing an increase of 1.2% compared to the start of 2025. This January shows a positive trend: spending is increasing at a faster rate than arrivals, which coincides with the Ministry’s push for a tourism model focused on quality, sustainability, deconcentration, and destimulation, along with greater diversification of the offering.
In terms of spending per traveler, the average amount spent per tourist stood at €1,522, indicating an 8.1% year-on-year increase. Daily spending averaged €177, up 7.3% from January 2025. The most popular stay duration ranged from four to seven nights, with over 2.2 million visitors falling within that range and showing an annual increase of 2.1%.
The Canary Islands once again emerged as the primary destination, accounting for the bulk of spending and arrivals. In January, the Canary Islands welcomed 1,427,922 visitors, a 4.9% increase compared to the same month in 2025, representing 27.8% of total tourists. Following behind were Catalonia, with about 1,027,000 visitors (approximately 19.7% of total, showing approximately a 6.2% decline annually), and the Community of Madrid, which received 766,365 tourists (around 14.9% of total) — an increase of 8.8% compared to January 2025.
Among the primary issuing markets, the UK showed a growth of 3.3%, making it the largest sender, with 897,095 tourists. In contrast, France and Germany recorded downward trends, with declines of 19.5% and 2%, respectively, while the Asian market indicated an increase of 8%, and the United States raised its flow by 3.4%. Overall, there’s notable growth in spending from the rest of the world, with positive behaviors noted in various issuing countries. In terms of regional distribution of spending, the Canary Islands, Community of Madrid, and Catalonia maintain a substantial share of tourism expenditure in January, with the Canary Islands leading the way in spending by destination.
These figures demonstrate, once again, a trend whereby spending per visitor is increasing at a rate exceeding the rise in arrivals, aligning with the strategy to shift towards a tourism model that emphasizes higher added value, sustainability, and destimulation.
