What do tourists spend most of their money on during a stay in Malaga and who are the biggest spenders?

A report, produced by Mastercard in collaboration with council's tourism department, reveals the areas where most visitors splash the cash in the port city on the Costa del Sol

Pilar Martínez

Malaga

Wednesday, 17 July 2024, 13:27

Tourists who visit Malaga city spend the majority of their money on food and drink during their visit, new data shows.

Tourist spending in Malaga city is growing in line with the increase in the number of visitors, according to a new report by Mastercard in collaboration with Malaga city council's tourism department. Of that spending, most of it is on gastronomy, with restaurants becoming the sector with the highest expenditure, followed by fashion and cosmetics, car hire and accommodation.

The amount invested in bars and restaurants in the city is on an upward trend, with a 43% increase in 2023 compared to the previous year, the figures show. However, the report warned of cumulative spending growth compared to 2022 in industries such as health clinics, with an increase of 103%, and supermarkets, with a 46% increase.

The report also points out the districts of Malaga where tourists spend the most with the Carretera de Cádiz and Ciudad Jardín coming in first, together with the city centre. The study, which shows that both the summer months and those after the high season boosted total spending in Malaga, points out that these three districts account for 81% of total tourist spending in the city. Carretera de Cádiz is the leading district, with a share of 38%, followed by the centre, which accounts for 29%, and the Ciudad Jardín district, with 14%.

"In the Carretera de Cádiz area, the car rental industry accounts for 24% of spending in this district compared to 2022, followed by fashion and cosmetics, which accounts for 14%. One in four tourists spending in this district comes from the UK, while Germany and the Netherlands each contribute 11% of the total," the report pointed out.

Meanwhile, in the city centre, hospitality, with 29% of the expenditure, is the biggest spending niche, with a 2% increase, followed by accommodation, while in Ciudad Jardín it shows a different spending pattern: 48% of the total is spent on clothes in tourist shops or Duty Free.

Tourists from Switzerland are the ones who charge the most to their cards, even more than visitors from the United States. However, despite the joy in the pockets of these visitors, it is the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Germany that lead in spending as a result of being the main issuers, the data shows.

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