Spain sets new tourism record with 58.1m visitors up to July

Spain has broken tourism records with almost 60 million international arrivals by July this year.

According to Frontur figures, a monthly statistical survey by Spain’s National Statistics Institute (INE), Spain saw more than 58.1 million arrivals in the first seven months of 2026 – a 4.6 per cent increase year on year.

Travellers from the UK accounted for 11.5 million people, followed by nearly 7.2 million arrivals from France and 6.9 million from Germany.

INE added that the country welcomed 11.5 million international tourists in July alone, another 4.6 per cent increase on 2025 arrivals.

The Balearic Islands were the top destination for tourists in July (22.3 per cent), followed by Catalonia (20.6 per cent) and Andalusia (14.6 per cent).

The most common length of stay for tourists was seven nights, with a 3.6 per cent decrease among day trippers.

Nearly 3.1 million people travelled as part of a package tour in July, said INE.

Spain could overtake France as the world’s most visited country by 2040, new research suggests.

According to a joint study by Deloitte and Google, Spain, with an estimated 110 million inbound arrivals in 2040, may take top place for annual visitors.

France, currently the world’s most visited country with 102 million annual international visitors recorded in 2025, is projected to welcome 105 million visitors in 2040.

Spain hosted a record 96.8 million international tourists last year, according to Spain’s National Institute of Statistics.

The companies behind the analysis say the research will “help travel operators and distributors anticipate and adapt to future trends”.

Read more: France set to be overtaken as the world’s most-visited country by 2040