Spanish tourist industry looks forward to return of Chinese tourists

Xinhua News Agency, Madrid, January 6th (Xie Yuzhi) Carlos Abelia, Secretary-General of the Spanish Tourism Commission, said in an interview with Xinhua News Agency that China is "the most important and most promising country for the Spanish tourism industry." one of the markets".

In the past few days, as China announced the orderly resumption of citizens' outbound travel, Spanish tourism practitioners have made preparations to actively welcome Chinese tourists back. Abelia told reporters that this was "indisputably good news." As China optimizes and adjusts its epidemic prevention measures, the industry expects to welcome more Chinese tourists.

The new crown epidemic has severely affected the Spanish tourism industry. According to the Spanish National Bureau of Statistics, the number of international tourists visiting Spain in 2019 reached 83.7 million, and in 2020 due to the epidemic, the number dropped sharply to 18.9 million. This number will rebound to 31.1 million in 2021, which is still less than half of the previous epidemic.

Abelia said that before the outbreak, the number of Chinese tourists visiting Spain had been steadily rising. Unlike European and American tourists who love beach vacations, Chinese tourists are more interested in themed tours such as culture, art, football, and shopping. "Chinese tourists are very important to us. Their arrival is not restricted by seasons, which can promote the development of off-season tourism and give Spain the opportunity to showcase more different types of tourism resources."

2023 is the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Spain, and the two sides will further deepen exchanges and cooperation. Abelia said that the Spanish tourism industry hopes to take this as an opportunity to attract more Chinese tourists.