Foreign tourist spending grows 6.7%

Spending by foreign tourists in Spain reached €59.8 billion in the first 11 months of the year, representing a 6.7-percent rise from the same period in 2013, according to figures released on Friday by the Industry, Energy and Tourism Ministry.

The good news came on top of figures announced earlier this week that a record 61.7 million international visitors came to Spain from January to November, a higher number than for all of 2013.

Average daily individual spending was €110, while each tourist paid out an average of €969 on their vacation

This has been a banner year for tourism, one of the few industries that have kept the Spanish economy going throughout a protracted economic crisis that began in 2008.

Average daily individual spending was €110, while each tourist paid out an average of €969 on their vacation.

Broken down by emitting countries, all the usual nationalities that choose Spain for their vacation destinations increased their total spending compared with last year, in particular the British, the French and the citizens of Asian nations.

British visitors disbursed the most money, €12.19 billion, representing 20.4 percent of international tourism spending. They were followed by Germans with 5.9 percent, and the French with 10.4 percent.

Catalonia was the Spanish region that received most of that money, €14.4 billion, representing 24.1 percent of the total, followed by the Canary Islands with 19 percent.