TravelBI by Turismo de Portugal

Markets

Spain

Market Characterization for Portugal

In 2024, Spain positioned itself as the 3rd largest tourist market for Portugal according to the overnight stays indicator (share: 9.7%) and the 2nd largest in terms of guests (12.3%). In 2024, the Spanish market recorded around 3,390.1 thousand guests (var.24/23: +0.6%) who generated 5,456.0 thousand overnight stays (var.24/23: -0.2%). It stands out as the 5th market in terms of tourism revenue with €2,826.9 million (share: 10.2%), up 8.6% on 2023.

In terms of overnight stays, the North was the main destination for Spanish tourists visiting Portugal (29.1%), followed by Greater Lisbon (24.4%) and the Algarve (15.5%). In terms of type, overnight stays in hotels predominated (65.8%), followed by local accommodation (17.2%) and apartment hotels (7.1%).

Portugal ranks 7th in total outbound air flows from the market; during this period, the airlines that transported Spanish tourists to Portugal were: Ryanair (share: 25.0%), TAP (22.4%), Iberia (21.1%), Air Europa Lineas Aereas (12.3%), Vueling (8.9%), easyJet (5.9%). Most operations originate in the cities of Madrid (share: 49.8%), followed by Barcelona (20.4%), Valencia (7.1%) and Malaga (4.6%).

It should be noted that Spanish tourists stay an average of 6.2 nights in Portugal (ForwardKeys); the majority buy direct airline tickets (share: 73.8%); and travel as a couple (33.0%).

According to SIBS data, the North will account for 35.5% of the 627.3 million euros in card purchases originating in Spain in 2024. The Center comes in 4th place (share: 7.5%), after Greater Lisbon (25.1%) and the Algarve (15.4%).

2024 Position | Year-over-Year Change

Guests 2.4M 2º | 0.6%

Overnight stays 5.5M 3º | -0.2%

Tourism revenue 2826.9M€ 5º | 8.6%

Disembarked passengers 3.6M 3º | 2.4%

Market Profile

Change 24/23

48.8 M Population

0.9 %

52012.4 USD GDP per Capita

3.1 %

2.7 % Inflation Rate

-0.7 pp

23.5 % Savings Rate

0.0 pp

Spain, a country on the Iberian Peninsula with 48.81 million inhabitants in 2024, was the 14th largest economy in the world.

According to Globaldata, in 2024 Spain was the world's 14th largest tourist market, generating 27.9 million trips and concentrating a 1.7% share of total world tourist demand. 83.7% of the flows are concentrated on the European continent. The main regions sending Spanish tourists to Portugal were Madrid (share: 49.8%), Barcelona (20.4%), Valencia (7.1%), Malaga (4.6%), Bilbao (4.3%), Seville (3.2%), Alicante (3.0%), Palma Mallorca (1.6%), Las Palmas (1.4%), Ibiza (1.3%), Tenerife (1.2%) and other cities (2.1%).

In turn, 66.4% of trips abroad made by Spanish tourists in 2024 were by air, 32.8% were by land and 0.8% by sea.

Team

Market team coordinator

Maria de Lurdes Vale

Info.Espanha@turismodeportugal.pt

0034917617254

Perspectives

IMF figures indicate that Spain's economy grew by 2.7% in 2023, despite the current unfavorable international climate, particularly with the conflict in Ukraine and the Middle East, rising energy costs and other raw materials and intermediate goods, and lower growth is expected for 2024 and 2025, in the order of 2.9% and 2.1% respectively.

According to GlobalData, between 2025 and 2028, Spain's international tourist departures abroad are expected to grow at a CAGR of 3.8%, to reach a total of 32.6 million departures in 2028. Spending by Spanish tourists abroad is expected to increase at a CAGR of 7.7% over the same period.

According to Forwardkeys, forecasts for flights in terms of passengers from the Spanish market to Portugal for the period from March to August 2025 point to a decrease of 10.9% compared to the previous year.

TOP10 destinations: France (share: 27.2%), Italy (15.0%), Portugal (8.7%), United Kingdom (8.6%), Germany (5.0%), USA (3.4%), Morocco (3.3%), Netherlands (2.9%), Ireland (1.8%) and Austria (1.6%).