A record 94 million foreign tourists craving for sun, sand and culture flocked to Spain in 2024 as the sector drives the country’s bullish economy, the tourism minister said on Wednesday. Tourism represents around 13 percent of the economy in the world’s second most-visited country, which this year has sustained growth rates well above a mostly sluggish eurozone.

“In 2024, the forecast for international tourists is around 94 million, 10 percent more than 2023. Spain therefore continues to break records,” Industry and Tourism Minister Jordi Hereu said in Madrid. The spend by foreign tourists last year is estimated at around 126 billion euros ($130 billion), a 16-percent increase on 2023, Hereu added.

But the boom has generated a backlash in tourist hotspots. Locals are complaining that surging visitor numbers are driving up rents and changing the fabric of their neighborhoods. Barcelona and the popular southern coastal city of Malaga have announced measures to clamp down on short-term tourist rentals in a bid to tame popular discontent at rampant housing prices. —AFP