British collapse in resorts like Benidorm fuels dramatic August fall in foreign tourists on Spain’s Costa Blanca

AUGUST foreign tourist numbers collapsed on the Costa Blanca falling by 63 per cent over 12 months, according to the National Statistics Institute.

COVID-19 travel restrictions, including the 14-day quarantine rule for returning UK visitors, meant that France accounted for 48 per cent of the 430,000 total of international visitors.

Travellers from Britain made up just 11.6 per cent of the foreign total, down by around 30 to 35 per cent on the normal August figures.

Nationally, Spain welcomed two point four million foreign visitors compared to 10.1 million in 2019, a fall of 75.9 per cent.

The tourist collapse had a dramatic impact on Costa Blanca tourist revenues which dropped by 70 per cent to €408 million in August.