Spain | Analysis of National Tourist Flows in Real Time in Sep-21

According to BBVA credit card spending data, national tourism spending picked up slightly in September. Growth in the month was 11% compared to 2019 levels (9% in August). If spending by Spaniards abroad is excluded, the advance stood at 22% (19% in August).

Key points

• Key points:
• The growth in recent months is still not enough to offset the decline at the beginning of the year: so far in 2021 the accumulated fall is still 13% compared to 2019 (-17% with data up to August).
• Total tourist spending, national plus foreign, remained above 2019 levels (7%), in line with August.
• Most of the Autonomous Communities continued to see the increase in spending by nationals in their territory during September and Madrid returned to pre-pandemic levels for the first time. The slowdown in the Balearic Islands and Navarra and its stagnation in Catalonia, the Canary Islands and the Basque Country stand out.
• The islands remain the only regions of origin that have not yet recovered the levels of spending by domestic tourists of two years ago since the beginning of the pandemic. There is a slight slowdown in spending by Madrilenians outside their community, while the rest of the Autonomous Communities of origin continue to advance at a good pace.

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