Tourists from Asia in Spain 2016-2023, by origin

South Korea was the country located in the Asian continent that accounted for the largest number of international tourists in Spain in 2023, with more than 434 thousand visitors. Notably, the number of South Korean travelers to Spain nearly tripled in 2023 over the previous year. 

Asian travelers in the Netherlands

In addition to the Mediterranean country of Spain, the West European country of Netherlands was also frequently visited by Asian tourists. There were reportedly more than 1.4 million travelers from Asia in the Netherlands in the year prior to the pandemic. By contrast, the number of inbound tourists from Asia to the Netherlands decreased by about 85 percent in 2020. Focusing on Dutch provinces, Noord-Holland was the region in the Netherlands with the most hotel guests from Asia in 2021.

Popular travel destinations in Spain

The Balearic Islands were the most popular Spanish travel destination for international tourists in 2021. The Balearic Islands, which include Mallorca, Menorca, Ibiza, and Formentera, welcomed about half a million more tourists than Catalonia in that year. Mallorca, which is the largest of the Balearic Islands, was also the leading beach destination in Spain based on the number of overnight tourists in hotels in 2021. The island ranked above Barcelona when comparing overnight stays in hotels that year.