Belgian visitor numbers to Spain are peaking, as shown by the figures that Turespaña shared with TravMagazine. 

Spain here not only encompasses continental Spain and the Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean Sea, but also the Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean. The Balearic Islands include Mallorca, Menorca, Ibiza and Formentera. The Canary Islands include household names such as Tenerife, Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote, La Palma, La Gomera, and El Hierro.

Numbers

In the first quarter of 2024, 523,358 Belgians have visited Spain, which represents an increase of 27.6% compared to the same quarter of the previous year. 

The Canary Islands grew by 40% in this quarter compared to the same period in 2023.

2023

In 2023, 2.76 million travelers from Belgium visited Spain, which is an increase of 9.7% compared to the previous year. This number is already higher than the level before the corona crisis. In 2023, Belgium was the eighth largest source market for tourists to Spain, with a market share of 3.2%.

The Spanish destinations most visited by Belgians in 2023 were the Valencia Region, with 25.5% of the total number of visitors, Andalusia with 18.6%, the Canary Islands with 15.2% and Catalonia with 14.4 %.

Belgian travelers spent 3.4 million euros in 2023 in Spain. An of increase of 10% compared to the 2022 and more than the pre-COVID-19 year 2019.

Belgians on the go

In an interview with TravMagazine, Miguel Nombela López, director of Turespaña in Brussels, describes the Belgian travel market as “one of the most dynamic in Europe“.

“The Belgian population made no fewer than 16.7 million trips abroad in 2023, which represents an increase of 4.1% compared to the previous year.”

83.4% of Belgian trips went abroad, which is 4% more than in 2022. 

“The Belgian market remains a priority for Spain. Spain is the third most preferred destination for Belgian travelers and their favorite sun and beach destination. The Belgian travel sector is very proactive.”

Noticeable

Turespaña’s findings are noticeable. Looking at our Instagram feeds, we saw many friends and acquaintances travel to Spain in 2023 and at the start of 2024 And indeed Valencia is popular, as is Andalusia. Dennis went in 2023 and so did we. 

At the moment we are publishing our adventures on the Andalusia Whirlwind Tour. 

2023 Andalusia Whirlwind Tour

1. Visiting Gibraltar in 2013.
2. REVIEW | Eurostar Amsterdam – Antwerp – Brussels – Paris in 2023.
3. PARIS | Restaurant Le Train Bleu at the Gare de Lyon.
4. REVIEW | SNCF TGV inOui from Paris-Gare-de-Lyon to Barcelona-Sants.
5. REVIEW | Hotel Barcelo Sants.

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• CLIMATE CHANGE & TRAVEL | Is Belgium ready to be the Spain and Italy of the future?.
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• Flanders’ art cities residents still proud of their city, but highlight drawbacks of tourism more
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• City happy with Winter in Antwerp 2022-2023 edition.
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• Belgians travelled massively in the first quarter of 2022.
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• Discovering Belgium and the Netherlands in COVID times.
• Will COVID-19 be the End of Business Class?.
• The world of travel and planning after coronavirus COVID-19.