The Madrid City Council has launched a number of campaigns in recent months to attract tourism amid the COVID-19 pandemic and, according to the recent data, they seem to have had a positive effect.
During February, visitors chose the Spanish capital again, especially international visitors. According to INE data, the number of guests increased by 276%, and in the case of foreign tourists, the increase was 504% compared to February 2021. Over the last 12 months, a total of 5,350,450 visitors traveled to the city, which represents a year-on-year increase of 279.3%, a variation 135.4 points higher than in the previous period.
As for overnight stays, they grew by 284.3% year-on-year in February, a positive figure, although still 23.4% lower than in 2020, in the month prior to the state of alarm decree. In February 2022 alone, overnight stays exceeded 1,174,000, up 284.3% year-on-year. In terms of origin, the upward trend in international tourism was confirmed, with a year-on-year increase of 440% in overnight stays of foreign tourists and 207.6% of domestic travelers.
Over the last 12 months as a whole, travelers spent 11,198,146 nights in Madrid, 254.7% more than a year earlier, an increase of 119 points than in January of the same year. Spain registered an increase of 201.5% in the same category.
The Counselor Delegate for Tourism, Almudena Maíllo, has valued very positively the data that, despite the persistence of the pandemic, show the resilience and drive of the tourism sector in Madrid. "We know the need for recovery and increase of this type of tourism which, without forgetting the domestic sector, is key for the city of Madrid. As a result, we are creating, together with the Community of Madrid and Ifema, the agreement for promoting Madrid as a destination in key markets, especially the Middle East, Asia, the United States and Latin America".
In addition to travelers and overnight stays, other data reflect the gradual recovery of the sector, such as employment in hotel establishments, which grew by 147.7% year-on-year in February, to 10,435 workers. As for the number of available hotel rooms, they increased by 81% compared to a year ago, although they are still 2.7% below February 2020. Average occupancy has risen by 25.2 points up to 48%.
Finally, the average length of stay was again 2.09 nights per traveler, 0.1 nights less than a year earlier. The average stay of domestic travelers was 1.82 nights and that of visitors from outside Spain was 2.55 nights.