The x-ray of Valencian tourism, after the first semester of activity of 2023, offers the image of a destination in which travelers spend more time on average than in the rest of the Peninsula (3.14 days, only behind the Canary Islands -6.32, and the Balearic Islands -4.9), but in which they spend less than in the main Spanish destinations.
According to the data provided by the National Institute of Statistics (INE), the Valencian Community was the fifth Spanish autonomy in every month of this year in number of travelers received in its hotels, in available places, in overnight stays and in employment generated in the sector. The order of the rest changes: in June Catalonia leads (2,274,000 travelers), followed by Andalusia (1.9 million), the Balearic Islands (1.8) and Madrid (1.1), while establishments in the Valencian Community received 933,724 travelers, the highest for the year, ahead of the 900,337 in April.
However, in the winter months and the beginning of spring, the Balearic Islands receive fewer travelers than the Valencian provinces, but the Canary Islands rise to fourth place. What remains unchanged is that in all those months, without exception, the average stay in Valencian hotels is the highest on the peninsula, the third after the islands.
Although there is still no official data for June, in the case of tourist apartments, it is striking that Valencia is the community that offers the most beds, 158,294, much more than the Canary Islands (128,000) and almost double that of the third, Andalusia, which stands at 86,000. And the average stay is also one of the longest: 5.72 days, behind Murcia (5.91) and the Canary Islands (6.65).
That the Valencian Community requires time is also demonstrated by the data on the average duration of trips made by non-residents, which has been the highest in Spain in four of the first five months of the year and it was in ten of the twelve months of 2022. In May it was 8.21 days and only the Canary Islands and Andalusia slightly exceeded the week.
The most negative data is found in the average cost per traveler. Foreign tourists spend less in the Valencian Community (1,032 euros per person per day) than in all the autonomies considered more touristy. The ranking is led by Madrid, with 1,806 euros, followed by the Canary Islands (1,312), Andalusia (1,180, equivalent to the Spanish average), Catalonia (1,133), and the Balearic Islands (1,068).
The data is even worse if we consider the Spanish tourists who visit us. The Valencian was in the first quarter of 2023 the thirteenth autonomy in spending per national traveler, just 167 euros a day, when the Spanish average is 191. euros.
Regarding employment, in June, Valencian hotels gave work to 19,784 people, far from the 65,000 workers from the Balearic Islands, 51,000 from the Canary Islands, 47,000 from Andalusia and 42,000 from Catalonia, but ahead of the 15,000 from Madrid. 4,240 employees worked in the Community’s tourist apartments in May, 10,000 in the Canary Islands, 5,600 in Andalusia and 5,200 in the Balearic Islands.
