Main countries of origin for inbound tourism in Portugal 2023

Portugal’s touristic influx has led foreign nationals into the country, particularly from European nations. International tourists visiting Portugal, in 2023, mostly originated from Spain, numbering almost 2.379 million. In second place, the United Kingdom registered over 2.35 million visitors to Portugal, while the United States recorded more than 2.3 million travelers.

There were regional preferences for international tourists

Portugal presented regional differences when it came to the countries of origin of international visitors. In the Algarve, the country’s second most visited region by foreigners, British, Spanish, and German nationals were the biggest groups of foreign tourists. The United Kingdom was accountable for over one million visitors in the region during 2022. In the autonomous region of Madeira, British travelers also dominated, with 314 thousand overnight visitors. German, French, and Polish nationals followed in the archipelago.

The travel and tourism sector showed signs of revival after the coronavirus pandemic

Overnight stays by international tourists in Portugal were numbered at 46.6 million in 2022, which represented a large recovery after the years of impaired tourism due to the coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19). Despite such recuperation, this number did not yet match pre-pandemic values. However, the inbound expenditure of foreign tourists was, in 2022, the highest ever. In Portugal, non-national visitors spent over 21 million euros during that year, which meant a 13 percent increase compared to 2019.