Else Beekman
A recent study by a credit card company has highlighted the spending patterns of tourists in Málaga. Visitors from the UK, the Netherlands, Germany, Sweden, Belgium, and Italy are responsible for three-fifths of the total tourist expenditure in the city.
The study highlights that the highest spending sectors for visitors in Málaga include the following;
- dining
- fashion and cosmetics
- car rentals
- accommodation
- duty-free items
Dining leads the spending sectors
Dining emerges as the top spending sector for tourists in Málaga, followed by fashion and cosmetics, car rentals, accommodation, and duty-free items. The clinical and health sector experienced the highest growth, with a 103% increase in spending from 2022 to 2023. This was followed by spending growth in supermarkets (46%) and dining (43%).
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District spending analysis
The report, compiled by the Málaga Tourism Department and Mastercard, also provides a detailed breakdown of tourist spending by district for the year 2023 compared to 2022. The Carretera de Cádiz district leads with 38% of the total spending, followed by the Centro district with 29%, and Ciudad Jardín with 14%.
In Carretera de Cádiz, car rentals account for 24% of the spending, with fashion and cosmetics making up 14%. British tourists are the largest spenders in this area, followed by Germans and Dutch, each contributing 11% to the total expenditure.
Centro district spending patterns
In the Centro district, dining is the largest spending category, accounting for 29% of the total, an increase of two points from 2022. Accommodation represents 17% of the spending. Here too, British tourists are the top spenders, followed by visitors from the Netherlands and Germany.
Ciudad Jardín shows a different spending pattern, with 48% of the total expenditure going towards duty-free items, followed by 18% on dining. British tourists dominate spending in this district as well, contributing 32% to the total.
Rising tourist numbers and expenditure
The report underscores the correlation between the increase in tourist arrivals and the growth in spending in Málaga. Tourist numbers in Andalucía and the Canary Islands are close to matching pre-pandemic levels, with hotel occupancy reaching 97% of the figures from the summer before the pandemic. Urban tourism in Madrid and Barcelona has also seen significant growth, with tripled reservation numbers compared to the previous year.
Despite an increase in cancellations in the second quarter of the year compared to 2019, they have reduced by 20% compared to 2021, indicating a strong recovery in the tourism sector.
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