The three Valencia provinces received 478,634 international visitors, marking an inter-annual increase of 18.95%, which is well above the 7.4% national average. While the United Kingdom was responsible for 44.4% of the visits, with an increase of 12.2% in the number of UK tourists, the French market grew by 57.7% compared to March 2007.
The number of overnight stays by international visitors increased by 33.7% in comparison to the same period in the previous year. Tourism Secretary Angélica Such considers the role of Autonomous Region with the largest increase in the number of foreign tourists to be "the best sign that the Community is a top-level international tourist destination." 84.6% of the Community’s tourists arrived by plane. The El Altet airport in Alicante received 64% of these visitors, representing an inter-annual increase of 24.26%.
In addition, Manises airport in Valencia also experienced a “notable growth” of 54.36%. During the first quarter of 2008, 1,080,475 foreign tourists entered the Community, translating to increase of 10.77%, according to the same sources. There was also an increase in visitors from Nordic countries of approximately 52%, according to sources in the Regional Government.
LAS PROVINCIAS - April 2008
