15% of Russian tourists arriving in Spain choose Valencia region

Spain is one of European outbound destinations where the fall of the Russian tourist flow is not observed in the 2018 season. Moreover, in contrast to the key source markets in Spain, such as the United Kingdom, France and Germany, which this year show a decline of up to 5%, Russia shows steady growth. According to the latest data from the National Institute of Statistics of Spain (INE), over the eight months of 2018, the growth of Russian tourist traffic in the country amounted 4,9% compared to the same period in 2017: in January-August, 854,564 Russian tourists visited Spain. A portrait of a Russian tourist in Spain, according to statistics over the past year, is the following: the average age is about 36 years, 50% of tourists travel with family, 54% of them prefer the beach and cities, 60% are interested in cultural events and at least 76% enjoy shopping. According to Spanish statistics, more than 90% of Russian travelers come to Spain to relax, 74% of the Russians live in hotels, and 69% of our tourists travel independently. In 2017, according to the National Institute of Statistics of Spain (INE), Spain was visited by 1,150,055 Russian tourists, 15% of them chose Valencia region as their resting place. Thus, Valencia is on the second line in popularity among Russians after Catalonia. Only for 8 months of 2018, at least 19,721 Russians visited the city of Valencia, and according to forecasts, at least 10 thousand more citizens of the Russian Federation will arrive here by the end of this year. The duration of stay in the city is on average 2–3 nights. Another point of attraction is Benidorm resort. The Russians are attracted to the region by a wide range of opportunities for year-round recreation, including beach, cultural, historical and urban tourism, sports tourism, including yachting, as well as business and convention tourism. The daily direct flights of Aeroflot and S7 airlines to Valencia in the summer season facilitate the growth of the Russian tourist traffic in the region.