The National Institute of Statistics of Spain has calculated what losses the tourism industry will suffer without travelers from Russia. It turned out that during the season (from May to October) the country will lose 936 thousand Russian tourists. The Russians brought a significant share of income to the Spanish tourist industry in pre-pandemic 2019, although their share in the total tourist flow was small – 1.2%.
The average Russian spent 175 euros per day on vacation in Spain, while a German spent 138 euros, and a Frenchman 99 euros. Given the standard weekly vacation duration, 1 million Russian tourists replenished the Spanish economy by about 1.2 billion euros per season. Earlier, the Spanish Institute of Tourism estimated the losses from the absence of Russians at 1.4 billion euros. El Mundo gives a much lower figure – 83 million euros, which does not correspond to the true calculations.
70% of Russian tourists went to Costa Dorada (near Salou) and Costa del Sol (near Marbella). The Spanish authorities want to attract travelers from the UK, but they are not sure that they will be able to fully compensate for the financial injections of the Russians.
The British traditionally led the tourist flow in Spain, during the pandemic they lost ground to the French. The Spanish authorities believe that tourism income this year without the Russians could be about 80% of the pre-pandemic. The only thing that can disrupt the plans is rising inflation and energy prices in Europe. Due to increased costs, many families are saving on vacations. In addition, Spanish hoteliers remind us that none of the European tourists spent as much on vacation as the Russians.
Without Russian tourists, not only hotels suffer but also related areas: the owners of restaurants and boutiques in the Costa Dorada have already said that customers from Russia have always been the most solvent.