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II. OECD COUNTRIES PROFILES – SPAIN

Spain

Tourism in the economy

Tourism is a key economic sector in Spain and contributes around 11% of GDP to the
national economy – this is estimated to rise to 15.2% if indirect impacts are also included
(WTTC). Tourism is also an important source of jobs, with 2.2 million people employed in
tourism industries or 12.7% of total employment.
Low oil prices and the euro-dollar exchange rate have impacted Spanish
competitiveness and inbound tourism. Spain registered a record of 64.9 million international
tourist arrivals in 2014 (an increase of 7.1% on 2013), generating an estimated EUR 49.1 billion
for the Spanish economy in international travel receipts (up 4.2%). Growth was recorded in
each of the main source markets: the United Kingdom (4.7%), France (11.3%), Germany (3.5%)
and Italy (14.6%).
Over 139.6 million domestic overnight trips were recorded in 2014, down 3.4% on the
previous year. Domestic travel receipts fell by a similar magnitude to reach EUR 19.8 billion.

Tourism governance and funding

National responsibility for tourism lies with the Ministry of Industry, Energy and
Tourism through the State Secretariat for Tourism. The State Secretariat is responsible for
developing, co-ordinating and implementing tourism policy that falls within the sphere of
the central government’s responsibility, as well as institutional relations at national and
international level. The Secretariat for Tourism co-ordinates three entities at national level:
Turespaña, Paradores de Turismo S.A. and SEGITTUR (Sociedad Estatal para la Gestión de la
Innovación y las Tecnologías Turísticas).
Turespaña is an autonomous body attached to the Ministry, carrying out its activity
abroad through the network of Spanish Tourism Offices supported by Spain’s embassies
and consulates. Its remit includes:
● Tourism promotion in international markets in collaboration with the regional authorities
(Comunidades Autónomas), local authorities and the private sector,
● Drawing up tourism policy in collaboration with other state organisations, public
authorities and the private sector,
● Supporting Spanish tourism firms abroad and also expediting international tourism
co-operation and relations,
● Analysing and disseminating knowledge and intelligence for the tourism economy,
● Drawing up plans and programmes to foster innovation, quality, sustainability and
competitiveness of tourism products and destinations,

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● Driving the modernisation of the tourism sector, improving its technological capacity
and enhancing the effectiveness and efficiency of management processes,
● Strategy and investment for the Paradores de Turismo.
Paradores de Turismo S.A., a public corporation established as such in 1991 but
whose origins dates back to 1930, runs the state-owned hotel network. There are now
94 establishments, employing 3 500 people, most of which are located in historic sites and
other interesting natural areas.
SEGITTUR is a state-owned company responsible for promoting research and
development for innovation in the Spanish tourism industry, in both the public and private
sectors.
The main co-ordination instruments between public and private tourism stakeholders
are the:
● Inter-Ministerial Committee for Tourism (Comisión Interministerial de Turismo) whose
members represent those national ministries that have responsibility for tourism-
related matters,
● Sectoral Tourism Conference (Conferencia Sectorial de Turismo) which brings together
public representatives from central government and the autonomous regions with
tourism responsibilities,
● Spanish Tourism Council (Consejo Español de Turismo) which brings together all the
territorial tourism administrations (state, regions and provinces/cities) and the private
sector i.e. chambers of trade, the National Employers’ Association (CEOE), professional
associations, trade unions and a wide spectrum of tourism professionals,
● Advisory Council of Turespaña (Consejo Asesor de Turespaña), established in 2013 to
enhance collaboration with the private sector. It comprises 11 members, 5 of which
come from the private sector.
The 17 autonomous regions are responsible for the promotion and regulation of tourism
within their own territories. Local entities (provinces and municipalities) manage their own
tourism interests, mainly in terms of promotion and dissemination of information.
Total resources allocated to tourism at State level in 2015 is EUR 323.72 million, a 2.18%
increase over 2014, but significantly less than in 2011. This includes EUR 236 million to the
Secretariat for Tourism and EUR 85 million to Turespaña. The main source of funding is the
General Budget of the State. At state level there are no specific touristic taxes. Turespaña
gets about 20% of its income resources from its commercial activity. The Secretariat for
Tourism is responsible for a special EUR 220 million fund, not included in the General
Budget, to provide loans for the modernisation of tourism destinations.
In addition, a very important share of tourism expenditure comes from the
17 Autonomous Communities and their own budgets.

Tourism policies and programmes

The scale and diversity of existing tourism legislation is a significant hindrance. The
Secretariat for Tourism has analysed the tourism laws of the 17 regional authorities,
2 Spanish cities in the coast of North Africa and 17 activity subsectors. Over the last two years
there has been progress in the development of a national strategy to support harmonisation
of the different regional regulations.

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 II. OECD COUNTRIES PROFILES – SPAIN

Spain: Organisational chart of the tourism bodies

Inter-Ministerial
Ministry of Industry, Energy and Tourism Committee
for Tourism

Co-ordination boards
Sectoral Tourism
Conference

State Secretariat for Tourism Spanish Tourism

(President of TURESPAÑA) Council

Turespaña’s
Advisory Council
Department for Co-operation Department for Tourism Development
and Tourism Competitiveness and Sustainability

State Company for Innovation and Tourism Spain Institute for Tourism State Network of Tourist Establishments
Technology Management and Facilities
(SEGITTUR) TURESPAÑA (PARADORES DE TURISMO DE ESPAÑA)

Spanish Tourist Offices

Department of Services Department of Knowledg

Department of Strategy and Services Department of Marketing
Administration and Technology and Tourism Studies

Source: OECD, adapted from Ministry of Industry, Energy and Tourism, 2016.

The current issues for tourism are the sustainable use of natural resources
(environmental, economic and social) and the need for planning and management in
public tourism policies. Other key issues are seasonality and geographical diversification,
away from the coast and towards higher spending markets. Spain has a wide range of
relevant products including niche areas such as rural and urban tourism, gastronomy,
shopping and health tourism. There is a rural tourism promotion plan for 2014, which is
already giving results, and a Plan for Shopping Tourism focused on Asian markets. A new
health tourism cluster has been created, with the combined efforts of different ministries
and the private sector in international promotion. Other areas of diversification include:
golf tourism, ecotourism and religious tourism.
Policy priority areas are defined in the National and Integral Tourism Plan 2012-15
(PNIT) which lays down a series of objectives for the Spanish tourism sector:
● Boost tourism activity and profitability,
● Generate quality employment,
● Encourage market unity,
● Improve international ranking,
● Enhance the cohesion and renown of brand “Spain”,
● Favour public-private co-responsibility.
● Address the seasonality of tourism.
These objectives will be accompanied by three instruments: boosting knowledge,
entrepreneurship and training; improving tourism supply; and diversifying demand.

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Emphasis is placed on strengthening the Spanish brand, and using the tourism brand
as a lever to improve the overall country brand, helping to generate confidence for
investing in, and trading with, Spain.
Emphasis is also placed on customer satisfaction. A loyalty programme has been
created along with initiatives addressing airport fees and the red tape associated with the
tourism visa process.
Policies also support the repositioning of mature destinations, with credit facilities for
renewing tourism infrastructure, customer experience management, standardisation of
accommodation rating and categorisation, bringing out the importance of Spain’s cultural
and natural heritage, wine and cuisine and innovation in destination management with
the design of Smart Destinations and Smart Cities specially supported by SEGITTUR.
In order to disseminate improved knowledge and information about the sector, there
is a new approach to national tourism statistics under the National Institute of Statistics,
creating synergies and reducing costs and allowing Turespaña to prioritise information
analysis.
To capitalise on talent and entrepreneurship, new financial instruments have been
developed to facilitate access by SMEs to money for Research, Development and Innovation
(R+D+I) projects and the development of innovative products. Credit lines for young
entrepreneurs seek to facilitate innovative business models, to improve competitiveness in
the sector and support the incorporation of young entrepreneurs and their projects.

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Statistical profile

Table 1. Spain: Domestic, inbound and outbound tourism

2010 2011 2012 2013 2014
TOURISM FLOWS, THOUSAND
Domestic tourism
Total domestic trips 354 425 347 695 372 811 398 423 462 761
Overnight visitors (tourists) 145 477 147 408 148 369 144 527 139 615
Same-day visitors (excursionists) 208 947 200 287 224 442 253 896 323 146
Nights in all types of accommodation 636 415 649 479 647 931 657 780 621 835
Hotels and similar establishments 107 291 111 755 98 985 97 100 95 568
Specialised establishments .. .. .. .. ..
Other collective establishments 46 718 49 551 45 341 42 911 41 577
Private accommodation 482 406 488 173 503 604 517 770 484 690
Inbound tourism
Total international arrivals 93 744 99 187 98 128 103 231 107 614
Overnight visitors (tourists) 52 677 56 177 57 464 60 675 64 995
Same-day visitors (excursionists) 41 067 43 010 40 664 42 555 42 619
Top markets
United Kingdom 12 440 13 615 13 624 14 334 15 007
France 8 125 8 375 8 913 9 539 10 616
Germany 8 814 8 975 9 319 9 857 10 422
Nordic countries 3 574 3 898 4 168 4 875 5 045
Italy 3 490 3 765 3 538 3 225 3 698
Nights in all types of accommodation 501 684 516 477 511 424 542 631 576 069
Hotels and similar establishments 227 292 247 402 251 822 267 359 279 696
Specialised establishments .. .. .. .. ..
Other collective establishments 42 348 35 668 29 307 31 141 34 859
Private accommodation 232 044 233 406 230 295 244 132 261 514
Outbound tourism
Total international departures 14 254 15 944 14 916 13 434 13 952
Overnight visitors (tourists) 12 379 13 347 12 422 11 246 11 783
Same-day visitors (excursionists) 1 875 2 597 2 494 2 188 2 169
Top destinations
Morocco 12 604 11 926 10 833 13 227 13 246
France 12 959 14 257 13 426 11 621 12 638
Italy 9 275 11 225 8 285 7 593 8 694
Portugal 7 612 8 530 6 939 6 941 8 366
United Kingdom 7 450 8 641 6 947 6 679 6 494
TOURISM RECEIPTS AND EXPENDITURE, MILLION EUR
Inbound tourism
Total international receipts .. .. .. .. ..
International travel receipts 41 218 44 712 45 268 p 47 110 p 49 067 p
International passenger transport receipts .. c .. c .. c .. c .. c
Outbound tourism
Total international expenditure .. .. .. .. ..
International travel expenditure 12 787 12 492 12 012 p 12 360 p 13 679 p
International passenger transport expenditure .. c .. c .. c .. c .. c
.. Not available; c Confidential data; p Provisional data
Disclaimer: http://oe.cd/disclaimer

Source: OECD Tourism Statistics (Database).

1 2 http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/888933320524

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II. OECD COUNTRIES PROFILES – SPAIN

Table 2. Spain: Enterprises and employment in tourism

Number of
Number of persons employed
establishments
2014 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014
Total .. .. .. .. .. ..
Tourism industries 633 992 2 152 044 2 160 902 2 077 025 2 083 544 2 203 044
Accommodation services for visitors 177 947 325 563 360 751 320 424 313 190 321 742
Hotels and similar establishments 14 805 294 438 320 012 282 136 276 159 281 373
Food and beverage serving industry 265 366 1 057 623 1 040 288 1 016 518 1 019 399 1 082 036
Passenger transport 63 838 280 767 273 173 257 890 257 342 267 550
Air passenger transport 245 51 413 45 639 35 808 39 516 41 501
Railways passenger transport 59 27 652 24 648 27 739 26 692 24 614
Road passenger transport 63 149 197 426 197 294 188 224 185 334 191 924
Water passenger transport 385 4 275 5 591 6 118 5 799 9 512
Passenger transport supporting services 24 090 .. .. .. .. ..
Transport equipment rental 6 495 165 370 174 365 161 740 170 216 178 068
Travel agencies and other reservation services
15 812 55 692 53 719 54 354 55 724 62 144
industry
Cultural industry 30 895 99 622 92 065 93 090 89 369 96 630
Sports and recreation industry 49 549 167 406 166 541 173 008 178 305 194 874
Retail trade of country-specific tourism
.. .. .. .. .. ..
characteristic goods
Other country-specific tourism industries .. .. .. .. .. ..
Other industries .. .. .. .. .. ..
.. Not available
Disclaimer: http://oe.cd/disclaimer

Source: OECD Tourism Statistics (Database).

1 2 http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/888933320536

Table 3. Spain: Internal tourism consumption

Million EUR

2008
Domestic tourism consumption Inbound tourism consumption Internal tourism consumption
Total .. .. ..
Consumption products 53 923 51 736 120 889
Tourism characteristic products 42 616 34 790 91 013
Accommodation services for visitors 16 513 12 464 32 445
Food and beverage serving services 14 506 13 529 28 764
Passenger transport services 6 656 7 107 20 013
Air passenger transport services .. .. ..
Railways passenger transport services .. .. ..
Road passenger transport services .. .. ..
Water passenger transport services .. .. ..
Passenger transport supporting services .. .. ..
Transport equipment rental services .. .. ..
Travel agencies and other reservation services
3 384 418 6 043
industry
Cultural services 1 557 1 272 3 748
Sports and recreation services .. .. ..
Country-specific tourism characteristic goods .. .. ..
Country-specific tourism characteristic services .. .. ..
Other consumption products 11 307 16 946 29 876
Tourism connected products .. .. ..
Non-tourism related consumption products .. .. ..
Non-consumption products .. .. ..
.. Not available
Disclaimer: http://oe.cd/disclaimer

Source: OECD Tourism Statistics (Database).

1 2 http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/888933320547

276 OECD TOURISM TRENDS AND POLICIES 2016 © OECD 2016

 From:
OECD Tourism Trends and Policies 2016

Access the complete publication at:

http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/tour-2016-en

Please cite this chapter as:

OECD (2016), “Spain”, in OECD Tourism Trends and Policies 2016, OECD Publishing, Paris.

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/tour-2016-36-en

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