In April 2022, the tourist activity in Destination Barcelona maintained its pace of growth for the third consecutive month, thanks to the elimination of most of the restrictions caused by Covid-19 in the Destination, the easing of travel conditions, and the inherent seasonality of tourism.

In April, the accommodation supply in Destination Barcelona grew by +12.5%, adding around +15,000 new available beds, and the global capacity stalled at only -1.8% behind the same period in 2019.

Tourism demand grew once again compared to the previous month so overnight stays increased by +43.4% MoM and they were only -7.6% lower than in 2019.

In absolute terms, this recovery was basically due to the demand increase in Barcelona city, which recorded 2.5 million overnight stays, more than 0.5 over the previous month (+26.6%), of which almost 360,000 in hotel establishments (+25.6%), and +188,000 in homes for tourist use (+28.9%). Thus, 90% of the overnight stays registered in April 2019 in the city were reached.

In Barcelona region, noteworthy was the growth of the demand in hotel establishments, with a +300.000-overnight increase compared to March (+68.4%). Overnight stays in campsites (>250,000), and rural tourism (>33,000) overcame pre-pandemic levels (+1.6% and +5.8% on 2019, respectively).

The reopening of air routes and its consequent increase in air capacity led to a significant upward trend in air traffic at Barcelona Airport in April, when more than 3.5 million passengers arrived in March (+30.4% MoM), almost 80% of the levels reached in April 2019.

In contrast, in Barcelona Port, cruise passengers were still -48.8% below 2019, although they almost tripled during last month, also coinciding with the increase in cruise ship supply. As for ferry passengers, they increased by 76.4% MoM.

The number of visitors in cultural facilities in Barcelona city increased by 35.4% (MoM). 70% of the visitors were international, 10pp over the previous month.

Domestic tourism maintained the first position in the ranking of tourists in hotel establishments in Destination Barcelona (30.7%). However, international tourism (69.3%), regained market share again (+4.3pp MoM).

Meanwhile, in Barcelona city, the proportion of international tourists (79.0%), grew by +3.0pp during the same period. Significant was the change in the ranking by country of residence of these tourists: the Americans regained the top position after two and a half years, with an 8.6% share and almost 80% of the levels reached in April 2019. They were followed by the British (8.5%), who also outstandingly recovered positions, the Germans (8.3%), the French (8.0%), and the Italians (6.5%).

At Barcelona Airport, the proportion of passengers on domestic flights (29.3%) was also reduced in favour of passengers on international flights (70.7%). Despite being far from the domestic flight passengers, those travelling from Italy (10.3%) achieved the second position, followed by those from the UK (9.4%), Germany (8.1%), and France (7.5%).

Regarding the economic impact of tourism in Barcelona city in April, purchases with bank cards in the city shops also show how the expenses in tourism activity grew by over +140% compared to the same period last year, while culture and leisure expenses grew by over than +40%. The use of international cards increased slightly in the city (4.0pp MoM). On the other hand, the expenditure during the stay per person and day in the whole of the Destination stood at 70.7€, -20€ below the previous month, although standing almost at the levels of the same month in 2019 (-1.1%).

Finally, the tourism activity job market kept improving in April: registered unemployment continued falling, and for the eighth consecutive month, it was lower than pre-pandemic levels (-15.5% compared to 2019). The new hiring increased again but at a lower peace than in the previous month (+1.0%), mainly thanks to the growth of indefinite contracts, which for the first time surpassed the temporary contracts (55.6% vs 44.4%).

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With the analysis of the different thematic areas, which offer a transversal vision of the sector, the Observatory of Tourism in Barcelona updates the monitoring of the tourism activity. This analysis complements the monthly report on the Profile and Habits of Tourists in Barcelona Destination. All data is presented in three geographical areas: Barcelona city, Barcelona region, and Destination Barcelona.

Consult the interactive report: