Without banners or speech from the balcony of the town hall, but with joy. This is how the Spanish luxury sector welcomes customers from the American market, who are increasingly numerous. Last year, 3,835,884 travelers from the North American country arrived in Spain, compared to the 2,801,476 who did so in 2022, with the pandemic still raging, and the 3,324,870 in 20219, before the coronavirus stopped the world, according to data from the National Statistics Institute.
And Turespaña’s purpose is for the number to continue growing, since they have a less pronounced seasonality than that of European tourists. To this end, during 2023 it organized various events on the other side of the Atlantic, one of them within the annual conference of Signature, a network of American agents specialized in high-end products.
Little by little, Spain is taking over a piece of the pie of which Italy and France still have a larger portion, as stated by Xandra Falcó, president of Círculo Fortuny, a Spanish association for the high-end sector. She points out two factors, repeated by several of the sources consulted, to explain this growth: the opening of more direct routes with the United States and the implementation in recent years of internationally prestigious brands such as Mandarin Oriental, Rosewood or Four Seasons. “Spain was not identified as a luxury destination, and these brands have made it begin to be,” says Virginia Irurita, founder of Made for Spain & Portugal, an agency that offers personalized trips and experiences with a clientele made up of 97% Americans. .
“There are people who only travel to destinations where their favorite hotel brand has an establishment. There, chain loyalty programs are used much more frequently than here,” says Luis Osorio, CEO of Stayforlong, a platform specialized in long-stay reservations. With the internal data in hand, he affirms that in one year on his website, reservations in Spain from American clients have increased by 40%. “Even though they spend fewer nights, the outlay is greater. The figures we handle on average for the European countries in which we are located indicate that the average expenditure per night of this type of client is double what Europeans pay.”
Higher spending
Taking into account the data only for Spain collected by the INE, last year a tourist from the United States left, on average, 2,024 euros in Spain, compared to 1,277 euros for all travelers. That is, 58% more.
“When they leave their country, they look for the best. They go all out, even if they have to use a credit card, which is a more established habit there. In our hotel, the average ticket spent by an American guest is 8,000 euros, when that of a Spaniard is between 3,000 and 3,500 euros,” says Oriol Juvé, manager of the five-star resort Six Senses Ibiza. He maintains that, within Europe, “Spain is the cheap luxury destination”, with great growth potential due to its “authenticity” and security.
Authenticity is precisely what many of the clients who come to Virginia Irurita’s agency, which has been receiving American travelers for more than a decade, seek. “Now people come with more budgets than before. They want to know, learn how to live here. Enjoy wine, food, music. These are people who come to have a good time. And they are not only looking for exclusive things, like meeting the owners of a palace or winemakers. They also appreciate simple things, like sitting at a table in a town bar and watching people go by, like we do.”
That is, they are looking for experiences, one of the booming trends in the tourism sector since the pandemic. In fact, luxury experiences (gastronomy, tourism and events, among others) billed 8.6 billion euros in 2022, compared to 8.4 billion euros for personal goods (fashion, jewelry, cosmetics and furniture), according to Outlook for Spain’s high-end marketa Círculo Fortuny report with analysis from McKinsey & Company.
And even better if said experience has added value, like getting to know Madrid with the help of an architect. This is what Emilio Orduña offers at Architoursmad, the company he founded and directs. During his walks through the capital, he explains the origins of the city or discovers representative buildings of recent decades, depending on the requests of the participants, who in 2023 were 42% from the United States. “They like to make the journey ahead of time. “They want to know, they ask a lot and they show interest,” he explains, before adding that “by far” they are the ones who leave the best tips.
Among his clients are parents whose children are studying at one of the international universities or business schools that have campuses in the capital, and he usually jokes at the end of the tour about whether they have already “fallen in love” with Madrid and are thinking of investing here. or buy a house. Digital nomads also ask him about the best neighborhoods to live in, and they confess that they prefer coastal places in the summer.
Real estate investment
This interest in acquiring a property has been detected recently at Viva Sotheby’s. In fact, these weeks a board of directors who are part of the real estate consulting firm in the United States are in the capital to coordinate different events there with the local team, with a special focus on Florida, says Paloma Pérez, CEO of the firm in Spain. “It is an opportunity for them. The dollar is strong, and although the prime square meter here is rising, it is still a good price. So far in 2024, traffic to our website from users from the United States has grown by around 25%.”
The same opinion is held by Ana White, director of the premium housing area at Knight Frank, who assures that in 2018 American investment “was nominal” and that it has grown 4% in recent years, according to the consulting firm’s data. “The price quality that Spain and, specifically, Madrid offers make it a very attractive destination for these investors. They generally come looking for superprime housing in classic buildings. And, of course, very sophisticated concepts such as branded residences. “They come seeking the security of our capital, its strategic position in Europe and the cultural, hotel and leisure offer.”
Pérez, for his part, explains that, for the moment, clients who come to the agency looking for a home do so to enjoy it for a few months and rent it the rest of the time. Whether it is an apartment in the city center or a house in a luxury development on the outskirts, a preferred option for many. When it comes to the coast or islands, “they are attracted to the classic, old and traditional houses, even farms. It wasn’t like that before, they wanted the same things here that they had there.” And he highlights that the direct air connection with Mallorca has brought Americans to Menorca, a market that has traditionally been more dominated by the French.
Opportunity for crafts
In this taste for the traditional, Xandra Falcó sees an opportunity for the growth of “high craftsmanship” firms, which for years have struggled to survive in an era of rapid consumption. “At Círculo Fortuny, the hotels ask us for recommendations from our associates, from master craftsmen, to visit the workshop. See how a guitar is worked, a custom hat is made, or the candies from Bombonería La Pajarita are made by hand, which have been in Madrid for more than 170 years.” Falcó adds that he is a “trained” tourist who, in addition to buying from well-known brands, is increasingly interested in “local, unique and different products.” The association that she presides is finalizing a study together with Global Blue, the tourist purchase tax refund company, of which she can already provide some data. As the American traveler spent in 2023, on average, “1,500 euros on tax free purchases, which represents an increase of 67% compared to 2019.”
At a time when the massive arrival of tourists raises suspicions among sectors of the population, a certain part of the industry has begun to look at the so-called high-impact travelers, because they spend more, as a possible alternative. And among them, the Americans are among the most coveted markets
Follow all the information Five days in Facebook, x and Linkedinor in our newsletter Five Day Agenda
Newsletters
Sign up to receive exclusive economic information and the financial news most relevant to you
To continue reading this Cinco Días article you need a Premium subscription to EL PAÍS
_
#luxury #sector #desire #American #traveler