Americans head for Spain

SPAIN has been popular holiday destination among Europeans, but now it seems Americans want a piece of the action too. According to the country’s tourism research agency Frontur, arrivals from the US increased by 35.7 per cent to almost 100,000 in March 2013 compared to 2012. This is the highest growth rate of any nation.

The Costa Blanca is proving to be a popular spot for holidaymakers and there is good access between the area and the US. Direct flights operate from New York, Atlanta, Miami, Boston, Philadelphia, Newark, Charlotte, Dallas and LA to Madrid. Then there is the high-speed rail link to Alicante.

However, it isn’t just the Americans that are increasing Spanish tourism. Overall tourism was up 7.9 per cent year-on-year in March 2013. In fact 9.4 million tourists visited Spain between January and March.

British tourists made up just less than one in five (19.9 per cent) of all arrivals in the country, while Germans accounted for 11.9 per cent of total visitors. The French also increased their share in tourism, with arrivals rising by 16 per cent. Scandinavians were up 13.8 per cent year-on-year.