Malaga Airport second in Spain in number of 'low-cost' international passengers

In the case of Andalucía as a whole, the region ranks fourth in terms of foreign passenger traffic aboard low-cost airlines, preceded by Catalonia, the Canary Islands and Valencia. These airlines brought 2,169,789 foreign tourists to Andalusian airports in the first quarter of 2026, representing 16.7% of the total and an increase of 8.2%.

Turespaña says that, between January and March, Spain received nearly 22.4 million international passengers, registering a 5.8% increase compared to the same period in 2025. This represents 1.2 million additional arrivals. Last month saw an increase in arrivals from all major markets, with the exception of France. Worth highlighting are the year-on-year increase from Poland and Ireland and the positive trend from the US.

Regarding market diversification (other countries), Spanish airports focus on the increase in international passengers from China, South Korea and Brazil. The Turespaña report notes the decrease in tourists from the UAE, Qatar and Israel, as a result of the conflict in the Middle East.

As for traditional markets, Turespaña reports that the UK accounted for around 1.8 million international passengers and generated 20.8% of total arrivals in Spain, representing a year-on-year increase of 10.9%. The Canary Islands were the main destination, with a 34.2% share, followed by Valencia (18%) and Andalucía (15.9%).

A total of 1.1 million passengers flew from Germany (13.2% of the total), bringing back the positive trend lost at the start of the year, with a year-on-year increase of 32%, largely due to growth in the Balearic Islands and Andalucía. The Canary Islands were the main destination, accounting for 29.5% of the total, although this represented a 2.4% year-on-year decline. Similarly, Madrid and the Basque Country recorded a decline.

Turespaña says that the six main regions accounted for 97.5% of total arrivals in March, all registering increases. The Canary Islands saw the smallest increase, at 1.5%. Madrid received the largest number of passengers, with 25.4% of arrivals, followed by Catalonia and the Canary Islands, with 20.3% and 18.7%, respectively. Andalucía received 907,663 foreign tourists, representing 17.6% of the total and an increase of 11.4%.