Tourism has had an overall economic impact of 10,820€ million on the province, and over the last decade the number of tourists has increased by 20%.
The province of Malaga registered the best tourism results ever in 2014: 10,194,000 visitors, 7.3% more than in 2013, when 9.5 million tourists visited the province (representing an increase of 694,000). Furthermore, this result highlights the industry’s important growth over the last decade, since in 2004 a total of 8.5 million tourists visited the province, 20% less than in 2014.
In the absence of the official results for 2014 to be released by the National Institute of Statistics (INE), the unprecedented number of tourists visiting the Costa del Sol generated a direct economic impact of 7,086.8€ million, which includes tourist spending on transport to and from the destination, accommodation, F&B, food and other purchases, transport at the destination, and entertainment and culture, as well as other types of expenditure. And if the induced economic impact is also taken into account (3,733.7€ million, representing 34.5% of the total), tourism generated an overall economic impact of 10,820.5€ million.
Along these lines, Elias Bendodo, president of the Malaga-Costa del Sol Provincial Tourist Office, expressed his satisfaction with the record that "stresses the importance of tourism in helping to put the province on the road to economic recovery," since it is estimated that tourist spending in 2014 has generated around 132,000 fulltime jobs, according to SOPDE.
5.8 million tourists chose licensed accommodation
The number of tourists choosing licensed holiday accommodation in the province is estimated to be in the region of 5,795,342, a provisional figure as the official statistics for December 2014 will not be released until the last week in January 2015 – in short, 56.8% of all tourists chose hotels, hostels, B&Bs, apartments, camping sites or rural establishments when visiting the Costa del Sol.
From January-November 2014, 4,532,878 tourists stayed at hotels, according to the INE, representing a 3.76% year-on-year increase, and 1,011,934 chose other types of accommodation (apartments, camping sites and rural establishments), representing a year-on-year increase of 17.4%. Moreover, the growth in overnight stays was even more significant: 17,399,190 at hotels (+4.96%) and 6,127,304 at other types of establishments (+14.28%).
