Continued slide of euro fuels Brit bonanza on Spain’s beaches

Flush with cash, Brits are ramping up their love affair with Spain’s resorts.

As the euro hit a seven-year low against the pound, Brits have stepped up their love affair with Spain, fueling a tourism bonanza so far this year, and on course to break all visitor and spending records…

The importance of tourism to Spain’s economy cannot be underestimated, and the Bank of Spain has revealed that 25 per cent of all new jobs created in the country last year came from the tourism industry.

The weak euro may not be great news for Spaniards hoping to travel to the UK or USA, but it is proving an allure to British holidaymakers already enamoured with the country.

According to Hosbec, the tourism association of Costa Blanca – home to the wildly popular holiday resort of Benidorm – overnight stays from UK tourists have increased eight per cent this year when compared to last year, and with Brits now getting around €1,400 for 1,000 pounds, most holidaymakers are increasingly loose with the purse strings, which is having a “positive impact on consumption”, said Hosbec Secretary General, Nuria Montes.

In 2014, more than 65 million tourists visited Spain – a record – of which 15 million were from the UK. So far in 2015, the first two months of the year have seen Brits spend €1.1 billion in Spain, which represents a 10.6 per cent increase on 2014.