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Tourist spending in the Region of Murcia grew faster than almost anywhere else in Spain in the first four months of 2026. According to a new report by BBVA Research, which tracks real-time spending patterns using card transaction data, Murcia ranked second in the whole country for growth in tourist spending, beaten only by Castilla-La Mancha.
That is a notable result, particularly given the broader national picture. Across Spain as a whole, total tourist spending, covering both Spanish and foreign visitors, grew by 4.7% year-on-year, but that actually represented a slowdown of 1.8 percentage points compared to the previous period. The drag came largely from reduced activity in traditionally strong destinations, including the Canary Islands, Madrid and the Basque Country.
Murcia, along with Castilla-La Mancha and Extremadura, stood out as one of the strongest performers for spending by Spanish tourists travelling outside their home province, with average growth of around 10% in recent months. Encouragingly, that rise was driven by more people actually visiting, rather than each visitor spending more. Average spend per traveller per month dipped slightly, in line with what most other regions also experienced.
The positive picture extends across the wider southeast. Andalucía also recorded double-digit growth in international arrivals, welcoming over 1.4 million international passengers in April alone, with UK visitors leading the way, pointing to growing appetite from European travellers for this part of Spain.
The Easter period, which ran from March 28 to April 6, also delivered positive results for Murcia, with Spanish tourists the main driver during that window. The Canary Islands and other island destinations were temporarily held back by a combination of weather conditions and the wider geopolitical climate.
International visitors contributed positively throughout the four-month period too, with foreign spending maintaining steady year-on-year growth, even if the biggest gains in overseas tourism were recorded further north and in Castilla-La Mancha.
Looking ahead, the Costa Blanca is actively courting a new wave of high-spending Canadian tourists, particularly golfers and wellness travellers, as geopolitical tensions push Canadians to look beyond the United States for their holidays, a shift that could bring further benefits to the wider region.
For a region that does not always grab the tourism headlines, the numbers tell a quietly encouraging story.
Image: Audrius Strikaitis/Pexels
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