The increase represents approximately 3.3 million additional international air passenger arrivals compared with the first seven months of last year.
Turespaña’s international air passenger statistics include both non-residents and residents of Spain arriving on international flights. The terms international air passenger and international tourist are therefore not equivalent within the dataset.
Low-cost airlines accounted for 40.61 million international air passengers between January and July, representing 60.6% of the total and an increase of 7.2% year on year. Traditional airlines carried 26.42 million passengers during the same period, representing 39.4% of arrivals and growth of 2.3%.
Of the approximately 3.3 million additional passengers recorded during the first seven months of the year, around 2.7 million were generated by low-cost airlines.
The United Kingdom remained Spain’s largest international air passenger market, generating 14.52 million arrivals between January and July. This represented 21.7% of the total and an increase of 5.3% compared with the same period of 2025. Germany was the second-largest market, with 8.47 million passengers and a 12.6% share, although traffic declined by 0.4% year on year. Italy generated 6.85 million passengers, up 7.1%, while France accounted for 4.89 million, an increase of 2.1%. Arrivals from the Netherlands reached 3.05 million, down 0.3%.
Among other European markets, Poland recorded one of the strongest increases, with passenger numbers rising 28.1% to 2.15 million. Belgium generated 2.18 million arrivals, up 8.5%, while Portugal reached 2.20 million, an increase of 7%.
The United States generated 1.64 million international air passengers between January and July, 5.4% more than during the same period in 2025.
In July alone, Spain received 12.39 million international air passengers, an increase of 5.8% year on year.
European markets accounted for 87.4% of July’s international passenger traffic and increased by 6.1%. Passengers arriving from the Americas represented 5.7% of the total, up 3.1%, while arrivals from Asia accounted for 1.7% and increased by 4.1%.
The United Kingdom generated approximately 2.88 million passengers in July, representing 23.3% of all international air arrivals and an increase of 6.3%. Germany followed with 1.58 million passengers, up 0.8%, while Italy generated 1.27 million, an increase of 10.2%. France accounted for 899,715 arrivals, up 3.7%. Poland recorded a 31.9% year-on-year increase in July, while Belgium grew by 10.8%. Passenger traffic from the United States increased by 1.5% to 289,317 during the month.
Turespaña also reported increased arrivals from China and Canada, as well as growth from Brazil and Mexico. Passenger flows from Gulf countries remained lower overall, although Saudi Arabia showed signs of recovery.
Low-cost carriers transported 7.56 million passengers to Spain during July, accounting for 61% of international air arrivals and representing growth of 8.9% compared with July 2025. Traditional airlines carried 4.83 million international passengers during the month, up 1.4% year on year.
Madrid was the leading autonomous community for international air passengers during the first seven months of 2026, receiving 15.31 million arrivals, 5.2% more than a year earlier and equivalent to 22.8% of the national total. Catalonia followed with 13.96 million passengers, also up 5.2%, while the Balearic Islands received 9.53 million, representing growth of 2.8%. The Canary Islands recorded 9.21 million passengers between January and July, a decrease of 0.7% compared with the same period of 2025. Andalusia received 8.81 million international air passengers, an increase of 8.8%, while the Valencian Community recorded 8.32 million, up 11.1%, the strongest growth among Spain’s principal destination regions during the seven-month period. In July, the Balearic Islands received the largest share of international air passengers, with 2.66 million arrivals, representing 21.5% of the national total and an increase of 2.1% year on year. Catalonia received 2.52 million passengers in July, up 7%, followed by Madrid with 2.38 million, an increase of 4.6%. Andalusia
Tags: Turespaña Spain Aena Group
