Barcelona Airport surpasses 5.2 million passengers, with Spain as the main market

The Barcelona Tourism Observatory: city and region, presents the monthly analysis of the main tourism activity monitoring indicators.

The main conclusions of the October update are presented below by geographical area:

Barcelona city

• Hotels and guesthouses accounted for 676 establishments and more than 88,000 operational beds, slightly over September and above the previous year (+0.7% YoY. 25/24).
• Demand for hotels, guesthouses and Homes for Tourist Use (HTUs) increased compared to the previous month in terms of both tourists and overnight stays. If compared interannually, there was an increase in the number of tourists (+8.8% YoY. 25/24) and overnights (+3.2% YoY. 25/24) even though the average length of stay was shorter (from 2.8 nights in 2024 to 2.6 nights in 2025).
• By type of accommodation, the average stay was 2.3 nights in hotel establishments and 3.4 in HTUs. Meanwhile, the occupancy rate was 70.9% in hotel establishments (+1pp YoY. 25/24) and 59.4% in HTUs (+3.3pp YoY. 25/24).
• At Barcelona Airport, there were around 5.24 million passenger movements, which led to an increase of 5.6% compared to last year. The ranking of countries from which passengers flew to Barcelona Airport was led by Spain, followed by Italy, the United Kingdom, France and Germany.
• At the Port of Barcelona there were about 487,500 cruise passenger movements, slightly above the previous month, and 100,000 ferry passenger movements, which represented a year-on-year decline in ferry activity (-9.7% YoY. 25/24), while cruises activity continued to rise (+21.4% YoY. 25/24).
• In the monitored cultural facilities of the ICUB, the number of visitors remained stable compared with both the previous month and the previous year (-0.6% YoY. 25/24). Most visitors were international (72.7%), although an increase was observed in visitors residing in the city (+12.8% Var. 25/24).
• Regarding the origin of tourists staying in hotel establishments, the proportion of international visitors increased compared to the previous month and year (+9.4% YoY. 25/24). The ranking of tourists in this type of accommodation was led by residents of Spain (16.6% share), followed by those from the United States (15.9%), the United Kingdom (5.9%) and Germany (5.8%).
• The typical tourist in Barcelona¹ during this month was a 38-year-old traveller, most commonly visiting as a part of a couple (44.4%), and visiting the city for the first time (56.5%). Leisure travellers accounted for 65.4% of the total, while those traveling for professional reasons ranked second, at 17.6%.
• The average expenditure during stays in the city remained stable compared to the previous year (0% YoY. 25/24) but decreased compared to the previous month, going from €105 in September to €103.2 per person per day in October.
• Spending during the stay in the city was primarily allocated to food and beverages (44.5%), followed by entertainment, leisure and culture (21.8%), shopping (19%), and internal transport (14.4%).
• Regarding the labour market, new hiring in the core tourism sector increased compared to the previous month but decreased year-on-year (-5,7% YoY. 25/24). More than half of the new contracts were permanent, and registered unemployment in the tourism activity was lower than in the same period of 2024 (-1,2% YoY. 25/24).

Barcelona region

• The operational supply of tourist accommodation in Barcelona region decreased interannually (-2.3% YoY. 25/24) and compared to last month, with 1,053 establishments and close to 84,000 operating bed places.
• Tourist demand also decreased month-on-month for overnights stays (-18%) but not for tourist (+7%). Compared to 2024, there was an increase in tourists (+17.3 YoY. 25/24) and overnight stays (+12% YoY. 25/24). The average stay went from 2.8 nights in 2024 to 2.6 nights in 2025).
• By type of accommodation, campsites had once again the lengthiest average stays (3.4 nights), followed by hotel establishments (2.5 nights) and rural tourism (2.2 nights).
• In terms of occupancy rate, hotel establishments registered a 61.8% in bed places (+1.2pp YoY. 25/24), campsites registered a 55.5% (+7.5pp YoY. 25/24) and rural tourism registered a 21,8% (0.9pp YoY. 25/24).
• 59,4% of tourists staying in hotel establishments in Barcelona region were international, a slightly lower proportion than in the previous month (-5.6pp) and than in 2024 (-2.4pp YoY. 25/24).
• The typical tourist¹ in Barcelona region during this month was a 48-year-old individual who travelled for leisure (57.2%) and as a part of a couple (45.3%).
• Average expenditure during the stay was set at €50, lower than last month (-3.8%) but higher than the previous year (+9,6% YoY 25/24). Taking into account the data for Barcelona city, the average expenditure in Destination Barcelona was €81,5 (+6.8% YoY. 25/24).
• The expenditure during the stay was mainly allocated to food and beverages (64.7%), shopping (15.1%) and internal transport (12.6%).
• Hiring in the tourism activity in Barcelona region slighly increased year-on-year (+1.7% YoY. 25/24). More than half of the new contracts were permanent, and registered unemployment in the tourism activity was lower than in the same period of 2024 (-3.6% YoY. 25/24)

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¹ For more information on the profile and habits of tourists during February in Destination Barcelona, please click on the following link.

More information:

Summary of tourism activity in Destination Barcelona – October 2025

Tourism activity interactive report