Overnight stays in hotels throughout Spain increased by 5.8% in September this year compared to the same month last year, according to the latest data from the National Institute of Statistics of Spain (INE).

The findings show overnight stays in Spain’s hotels exceeded 38 million this September, a 5.8% rise over the 35.9 million overnight stays registered in September 2022, Schengen Visa Info reports.

In addition, between January and September 2023, overnight stays in Spanish hotels rose by 8.4% compared to the first nine months of 2022. 

“The number of overnight stays in hotel establishments also surpasses the numbers from the same month in 2019 (pre-pandemic levels),” according to the INE.

Furthermore, throughout September, travellers residing in Spain made up over 11.8 million overnight stays, whilst international travellers accounted for over 26.2 million overnight stays, the report goes on to say.

The data also shows the top tourist destinations in Spain for overnight stays in September were Barcelona, Madrid, and Calvià.

The principal destinations for Spanish residents over the month were Andalucía with 21.9%, Catalonia with 13.7%, and the Valencian Community with 11.8% of the total overnight stays.

Whereas international visitors mainly opted for the Balearic Islands as their favoured destination, representing 32.1% of the total overnight stays.

In terms of hotel occupancy, 66.2% of hotel rooms were occupied in September this year, an annual rise of 3.6%.

An additional INE report shows that during the same month, hotels registered an average daily revenue of €116.7 per occupied room, indicating an 8% rise compared to September 2022

Moreover, 27.6% of total overnight hotel stays were from visitors residing in the UK, followed by German visitors at 19.3%.

Spain welcomed 73.2 million tourists between January and September, a 19.1% rise over the same nine months last year.