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Lloret de Mar maintains figures above 100,000 sports tourism visitors and celebrates 20 years as a Sports Tourism Destination

Lloret de Mar has presented its annual sports tourism data as part of the Sports Tourism Working Table, a public-private coordination forum that this year celebrates its tenth anniversary.

During 2025, a total of 101,625 people linked to sports tourism passed through Lloret de Mar’s sports facilities. Of these, 58,723 were athletes and 42,902 were accompanying persons.

In terms of the number of activities, 494 sporting tourism activities were held throughout the year, of which 395 were sports stays (training camps) and 99 were sporting events.

Among the most prominent sports for training camps are athletics, football, swimming, triathlon and cycling, with a notable presence from international markets such as France, Poland, Sweden, Switzerland, Norway and the United Kingdom, which consolidates Lloret de Mar’s international standing in this segment.

The meeting also highlighted that 2026 will mark 20 years since Lloret de Mar was certified as a Sports Tourism Destination by the Catalan Tourist Board. Over these two decades, the destination has consolidated its position as one of the destinations with the most certified sports disciplines in Catalonia, including football, athletics, team sports, cycling, swimming and triathlon.

Following tourism trends, Lloret de Mar has been able to confirm, through its Tourism Intelligence programme, that tourism products related to an active and sporting component have increased, currently ranking third and fourth respectively among visitors’ interests.

The Councillor for Tourism, Cristina Aymerich, has highlighted that “this strong positioning of the destination has been made possible thanks to the natural resources and sports infrastructure we have, as the public-private commitment to specialisation, the structuring of the product, the strengthening of international promotion and strategic planning to host sporting events and stays throughout the year, which position us as an example of co-governance in this area.”

Currently, the table is made up of more than twenty certified accommodation establishments and receptive companies, and has become a key tool for sharing data, identifying market opportunities and driving new promotional and marketing initiatives.

Furthermore, for 2026, Lloret de Mar Town Council has secured a significant investment of €1,245,000 for the modernisation of several municipal sports facilities. The works include the renovation of the tartan on the athletics tracks, improvements to the municipal swimming pool, the installation of new turf on the Municipal football pitch, the refurbishment of changing rooms and various improvement works at the Molí football pitch.

In the words of the Councillor for Sports, Frederic Guich, “These investments allow us to continue improving the quality of the municipality’s sports facilities and reinforce sport as a key element for contributing to the resident-tourist balance, as well as a strategic tourism product for destagionalisation.”

Looking ahead to 2026, Lloret de Mar will continue to strengthen its position in sports tourism by participating in specialised fairs, professional workshops and promotional activities in international markets, as well as by organising a wide calendar of sporting events throughout the year.

Lloret de Mar consolidates its tourism evolution in 2025 with 5.1 million overnight stays and an improvement in profitability

Around sixty tourism professionals have taken part today in the presentation of the 2025 tourism data report for Lloret de Mar and the outlook for Holy Week 2026, organised by Lloret Turisme in partnership with the technology company Mabrian. The session also involved the company Bioscore Sustainability, which for the first time presented the destination’s specific sustainability results as part of the “Lloret Sostenible by Bioscore” project.

According to the main findings from the destination’s tourism intelligence and big data platform, Lloret de Mar consolidates the trend towards a less seasonal model with significant growth in the pre-season months (especially February and April) and the post-season (September and October), while the average stay (4.3 days) and average spend per card (€127.40) remain stable compared to the 2024 season.

Stability in volume and qualitative improvement

The volume of travellers and hotel nights remains stable compared to 2024, with a total of 5.1 million nights and 1.17 million travellers. This stability comes against a backdrop of a 4% reduction in available hotel rooms, which reinforces the improvement in profitability indicators.

This improved performance is reflected in an increase in RevPar (revenue per available room), at €53.90 compared to €52.34 in 2024, driven by increases in ADR (average daily rate) and the maintenance of room nights.

The destination records growth in the pre-season months (especially February and April) and in the post-season (September and October), a trend that reinforces the destination’s destagionalisation strategy and allows for a gradual reduction in the concentration of summer months through a more balanced distribution of activity throughout the year. In fact, the data show that the pre- and post-season account for 47% of annual hotel overnight stays, 22% from January to May and 25% from September to December.

This lower concentration in the central summer months contributes to a more satisfying experience for the visitor, which is reflected in the improvement of the overall satisfaction indicator, reaching 87 points, an improvement on 2024.

Changes in the ranking of international markets

In terms of origin markets, despite a slight decrease in overnight stays from some of the more traditional international markets and the domestic market, the growth recorded in other international markets allows the overall volume of stays to remain similar to that of 2024.

In the words of the Councillor for Tourism, Cristina Aymerich: “This performance reinforces the strategic importance of continuing to work on the diversification of markets, as it contributes to the greater resilience and sustainability of the destination”.

In the international market, for the first time by number of nights stayed, the Polish market (10%) consolidates as the third international market behind France (16%) and the United Kingdom (12%), overtaking Germany (7%) and confirming a growth trend for one of Europe’s emerging economies. This development reinforces the diversification of the international mix and contributes to maintaining the overall stability of demand. Countries such as Ireland, Sweden, Norway, Finland and Croatia also show significant growth compared to 2024, and the United States maintains stable figures.

A more balanced product mix throughout the year

The year 2025 confirms a clear evolution in the destination’s positioning. In 2019, visitors’ interest in the sun and beach product clearly predominated, but this year it has decreased by 8%, falling from 27% in 2024 to 19% in 2025. Currently the mix of tourist products is much more balanced, with a notable rise in interest in culture (up from 15% to 17%) and active tourism and sport, which remain stable at 13% and 10% respectively. Nightlife increases its share, from 7% to 9%, while the gastronomic, family and wellness products maintain similar shares to the previous year.

In the words of the manager of Lloret Turisme, Elizabeth Keegan, “This redistribution of interests favours a more evenly spread demand throughout the year and broader travel interests, aligned with the strategy promoted by Lloret Turisme over the past decade”.

High satisfaction and perceived quality improvement

The overall satisfaction index (87 points) improves compared to 2024. The improvement in the product satisfaction index (73 points) stands out, recovering from last year and rising above the 2023 and 2019 values.

Perceptions of safety (93 points) and climate (90 points) are also very high. In terms of safety, Lloret de Mar shows the second-best result compared to competing destinations.

Tourism sustainability: improvement in indicators

The overall tourism sustainability index improves compared to the previous period, standing at 56/100. This positive development is driven primarily by three key areas:

  1. Distribution of tourist spending

Although the average spend per card remains stable, it is growing in markets that are not the main ones — such as Belgium, the United States or Italy — and is distributed more evenly across categories, which reinforces the destination’s economic diversification.

  1. Sustainability perception

47% of mentions related to Lloret’s sustainability are positive, while only 13% are negative, evidencing an improvement in its image linked to the environment, well-being and cultural preservation.

  1. Motivational diversification

Homogenisation of the weighting of tourist products, achieving a very balanced product mix by 2025.

Incorporation of data analysis from the Lloret Sostenible project by Biocore

The report incorporates for the first time a detailed analysis by Bioscore Sustainability, expanding the management system with environmental, social and governance indicators that are measurable and comparable on an annual basis.

During 2024, the “Lloret Sustainable by Bioscore” destination project has recorded growth in the number of affiliated tourism agents (from 13 to 26) and participating establishments (from 25 to 49), which significantly expands the project’s measurement and monitoring base.

The analysis allows a distinction to be made between direct emissions, which have decreased both per overnight stay (-12.37%) and per traveller (-15.18%), and emissions linked to electricity consumption, which have increased, partly due to the rise in the national electricity factor and higher energy consumption per unit of activity.

This comparable annual measurement system allows for the identification of priority areas for improvement for both private establishments and public buildings, reinforces data-driven decision-making, and advances towards more efficient resource management.

Easter Week Outlook at Girona-Costa Brava Airport

As for the air connectivity planned for the months of March, April and May at Girona-Costa Brava Airport, 274,000 seats and nearly 1,400 flights are scheduled, with connections to 13 countries and 35 cities.

Although the overall planned capacity is slightly lower than that of 2025, the United Kingdom strengthens its position with new routes from Edinburgh and London Luton.

As for the profiles expected for Easter, a combination of families, couples and sports groups is anticipated, with a significant share from the French and domestic markets, as well as an increase in interest from the British and Polish markets. The diversification of interests — between cultural, active, sporting and short-break getaways — reinforces the destination’s appeal during this period.

Lloret de Mar – Closing report 2025

Lloret de Mar’s tourism figures for 2024 show an increase in the number of overnight stays compared to 2023 and a significant increase in new markets such as Ireland

Around sixty professionals from the tourism sector today attended the presentation organised by Lloret Turisme and Mabrian Technologies to present the report on tourism data for the end of 2024 in Lloret de Mar and the outlook for Easter Week this year, extracted from the destination’s tourism intelligence and big data platform.

The most significant data is the growth in hotel overnight stays compared to 2023, reaching 5,100,000, which represents an increase of 6%. Particularly noteworthy is the compensation of the Russian and Ukrainian markets, which in 2019 contributed more than 400,000 and 100,000 overnight stays respectively, with the 9 main international markets: France, the United Kingdom, Germany, Poland, Belgium, Italy, the Netherlands, Ireland and Switzerland. In the words of the Councillor for Tourism, Frederic Guich, “these figures strengthen Lloret de Mar’s appeal in different European markets, achieving a balance in the volume of visitors from different countries, which is especially necessary in situations of instability or armed conflict that may affect a particular issuing market”. In terms of volume of international overnight stays, France continues to be in first place with 918,733 overnight stays (18% of the total and a decrease of 3% compared to the previous year); the United Kingdom with 587,697 overnight stays (12% of the total and 6% less than in 2023); Germany with 554,099 (11% of the total and 24% more than in 2023); Poland with 339,020 overnight stays (7% of the total and 24% more than in 2023); Poland with 339,020 overnight stays (7% of the total and 24% more than in 2023); and the United Kingdom with 587,697 overnight stays (12% of the total and 6% less than in 2023).020 (7% of the total and 7% less than in 2023); Belgium with 295,235 (6% of the total and 2% less than in 2023); Italy with 259,472 overnight stays (5% of the total and 4% less than in 2023); the Netherlands with 231,960 overnight stays (5% of the total and 59% more than in 2023) and Ireland with 104,223 overnight stays (2% of the total and 209% more than in 2023). In the words of the manager of Lloret Turisme, Elizabeth Keegan, “the diversification of the destination and the commitment to new markets such as Ireland, as the figures show, is paying off”.

The Spanish market, with 850,227 overnight stays (17% of the total), continues to be key after the French market, with an increase in interest in the destination during the months of January, February, March and, especially, May.

Other important data regarding the profile of the traveller are as follows:

Audience segments. Globally, couples represent the main segment in Lloret de Mar (+40%), being particularly relevant in the Spanish and Irish markets. In terms of travel groups, groups of friends stand out in the Italian, German and Dutch markets, and families in Poland and the Czech Republic.

Travel motivations: Although the Sun and Beach product continues to be the destination’s main attraction, its weight is decreasing and other products such as cultural, active and sports products are becoming more important.

Products such as active and sports tourism are beginning to gain importance in the destination, encouraged by Lloret de Mar’s commitment to activities and events of this type. Mentions of these products highlight authentic experiences in a natural setting, combining physical activity and scenery at the same time.

Gastronomy, although still less important than other destination experiences, is undoubtedly another of the levers that will continue to be highlighted.

Card spending: The overall average spend increases (€168, +2% compared to 2023), although the absence of Eastern markets, especially the Russians, is noticeable in these figures and therefore still falls short of the pre-pandemic average (€173 in 2019).

The analysis by market shows very significant increases in card spending for the Netherlands and Belgium compared to pre-pandemic levels (+41% and +26%, respectively) and also growing compared to 2023.

The countries with the highest average card spending are Ireland and Switzerland, both of which will increase their share of total overnight stays by 2023.

Accommodation is the main item in the travel budget, followed by restaurants, commercial food establishments, and bars and nightclubs.

Destination performance: RevPar (revenue per available room) stands at €54. This increase is driven by growth in rates, while occupancy declined slightly, probably reflecting a RevPar growth strategy focused on improving ADR (average daily rate) rather than occupancy.

The growth in rates that is reflected in the prices published in the OTAs is accompanied by significant increases in the hotel satisfaction index, indicating a commitment to improving the product that allows for a positive quality-price ratio.

Overall satisfaction index: At 86 points, it has remained stable since the pre-pandemic period. The safety index has improved in recent years (95 points).

Easter Outlook 2025

In general terms, between 170,000 and 200,000 overnight stays have been generated during Easter Week in the last two years, with the national market accounting for 65% of the total in 2023, mainly from the province of Barcelona.

Outlook for scheduled air capacity: In the following months and up to the summer, the number of seats scheduled at Girona Costa Brava airport increases considerably compared to previous years.

The increase in Ryanair seats, together with the opening of new routes operated by Ryanair, Wizz Air Hungary or SmartWings, reveal positive prospects for the coming months.

Report link:

https://mylloret.lloretdemar.org/hubfs/Informe%20tancament%202024%20-%20Lloret%20VF%2011_03.pdf?utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz–GgIpxBrRCutfdU_q7QgoFh2FR_ZgosSG7QeWmZJnsYBE_t11tHCYLMP4sjIvbR_r32fjY

Lloret de Mar surpasses the figure of 100,000 visitors linked to sports tourism

A total of 104,307 people linked to sports tourism visited Lloret de Mar’s municipal sports facilities in 2024. This figure represents an increase of 25.7% compared to 2023, which closed with 82,970 visitors, and has enabled Lloret de Mar to exceed 100,000 visitors linked to sports-related trips. Of this total, 59,572 were sportspeople and 44,735 were accompanying persons. The busiest months at the municipal sports facilities last year were June, with 14,378 sportspeople, and March, with 10,731.

These data were presented at the sports tourism working group organised annually by Lloret Turisme, which is made up of more than twenty accommodation establishments and two incoming agencies, all of which have been awarded Sports Tourism (DTE) and/or Cycle Tourism certification by the Catalan Tourism Agency of the Government of Catalonia.

In terms of sports activities, a total of 564 sports tourism activities were carried out in Lloret in 2024, 33% more than the previous year, 80% of which were training camps.

By number of participants, the most popular sports are football (20,029), basketball (9,762) and athletics (9,169). And by nationality in terms of the number of activities, the most popular are France (110), Sweden (78), Catalonia (46) and multi-market (40). In terms of the number of activities, the most popular sporting disciplines in Lloret de Mar in terms of sports tourism are: football (179), followed by athletics (123), cycling (86), swimming (63) and triathlon (47). In general terms, the most relevant markets are France, Sweden, Catalonia and Norway. In the last year, there has been a significant growth in training camps for football teams from Poland and the United States.

As a major event last year, from 23 to 27 October, Lloret de Mar hosted the 49th edition of the UN Inter-Agency Games 2024, a friendly sports competition organised annually by the United Nations, with more than 1,600 participants from over 120 countries. The aim of the event is to foster friendship, cohesion, friendly competition and teamwork among UN employees. During their stay, they took part in all kinds of sporting activities programmed in the different facilities in the municipality and its surroundings (athletics, team sports such as football, basketball or handball, tennis and paddle tennis or swimming, among many others). Elizabeth Keegan explains that this event “is a clear example of the Meetings & Sports product, in which Lloret de Mar has great potential thanks to the joint work of the public and private sectors and destination’s historical specialisation in both meetings tourism and sports tourism, together with an exceptional natural environment and the ideal infrastructure for hosting these events”.

This year Lloret de Mar, in the same vein, will host the 44th edition of the international MEDIGAMES event from 7 to 14 June, this time with the participation of some 1,500 professionals from the world of medicine and health who will meet in Lloret de Mar, where they will take part in an extensive sports programme and a symposium.

Lloret de Mar has been certified as a Sports Tourism Destination by the Catalan Tourism Agency since 2006 and is the destination in Catalonia with the most certified sports (football, athletics, team sports, cycling, swimming and triathlon).

The hotels in Lloret de Mar that have made recent investments are far superior in terms of satisfaction to the rest of the hotels in the same category

The good perception of tourist safety, with 95 points out of 100, and the significant difference in customer satisfaction scores between refurbished and non-refurbished hotels of the same category, are two of the main conclusions that were presented at the presentation organised by Lloret Turisme, together with Mabrian Technologies, to present the report on tourism data for the summer season (May-October) in Lloret de Mar, extracted from the destination’s tourism intelligence and big data tool and attended by around fifty professionals from the tourism sector.

This platform is fed by different sources such as: scheduled air capacity, flight prices, card spending at the destination, comments on social networks, searches on Google’s metasearch engine, profiles and behaviour of visitors who have booked through Booking.com and complementary sources such as the data on tourists and overnight stays provided monthly by the National Statistics Institute (INE). For the Mayor of Lloret de Mar, Adrià Lamelas, “The conclusions show, on the one hand, that we still have the potential to strengthen the pre- and post-season months because there is a general interest in the destination from both the domestic and international markets and, on the other, that there is room for improvement to achieve a better balance between the needs of tourists and residents in July and August”.

The number of visitors and overnight stays in hotels estimated by the INE for this summer season (May-October) closed with 943,537 visitors and 4,320,547 overnight stays compared to 889,448 travellers and 3,957,980 overnight stays in 2023 for the same period.

In the words of Elizabeth Keegan, manager of Lloret Turisme, “Updated hotels improve customer satisfaction and price and are an important ally in the repositioning and diversification strategy of the destination”.

 

MAIN CONCLUSIONS

Increased interest in Lloret de Mar on the part of international markets and a decline in local markets during the central summer months, returning to a ratio of national to international travellers very similar to the pre-pandemic:

  • +6% visitors and +9% overnight stays compared to the previous year.
  • The French market is losing presence, but remains by far the leading international market.
  • The UK and Germany became the main source markets in June and July respectively.
  • An increase in overnight stays is observed in all months, especially from May to July.

 

The average length of stay was 4.6 days, a slight increase on the previous year.

 

Increased air connectivity at Girona and Barcelona airports

  • Girona Airport: The British market continues to have the greatest weight in arrivals by air with Jet2, TUI and Ryanair. Ireland, with 4 connections, has more than doubled its air capacity with Ryanair in Girona compared to 2019.
  • The German market, also with Ryanair and 6 connections this 2024, has grown substantially compared to 2023, as has Poland.

 

Customer segment

  • Holidays with friends gain weight compared to other travel groups, especially families, in the Italian, Dutch and Swiss markets, especially in July and August.

 

Average card spending grows significantly

  • Average spend at destination increased in almost all markets (+2%), with the exception of Germany.
  • Decrease in the weight of expenditure on accommodation in relation to restaurants, bars and nightclubs.

 

Higher occupancy and slightly improved ADR in hotel accommodation

  • Hotel occupancy levels increase in all months of the summer season, with August above 90%.
  • The average length of stay has increased slightly in all months except August.
  • The ADR in July has increased slightly to €120 and in August to €134.
  • The difference in prices of the updated 4* hotels is 10% higher than the rest.

 

Hotel satisfaction and prices

  • Upgraded 4-star hotels far outperform the rest in customer satisfaction.
  • The satisfaction index of these establishments stands at 77 out of 100, while that of the rest stands at 44 out of 100.
  • According to data published in OTAs, the updated establishments work with 10% higher prices.
  • The overall index of customer satisfaction with the destination is 87 points, of which 68 points are for satisfaction with the tourism product, 95 points for the safety index and 92 points for the climate index.

 

CONCLUSIONS BY MARKET

Domestic market
Lloret de Mar continues to retain part of the national public that has rediscovered the destination during the pandemic.

Early summer (May, June) and late summer (September, October) getaways are key to retaining this audience.

France
It reduces its weight especially in the central summer months.

4% increase in average expenditure, with accommodation being the main category of expenditure, followed by food, indicating that holiday homes and flats are gaining in popularity.

As a public profile, an important weight of couples and families, especially in the months of May and June.

United Kingdom
The United Kingdom became the second largest international outbound market, with an 11% increase in overnight stays compared to the previous year.

The interest of the British market is growing, especially in the months of May, June and September, with a higher proportion of single travellers and an average stay of 5.5 days.

Germany
Strong growth of interest in all summer months, with June, July and August being the most important months. The large increase in air capacity and the reduction in the price of airline tickets has favoured this growth.

The Netherlands
Growing interest with respect to 2023, very focused on July, which translates into an increase in overnight stays, especially in this month.

Switzerland
Second market with the second highest average expenditure at destination. Accommodation is the main expenditure.

Belgium
A loyal market with a balanced customer profile and one of the longest average stays.

Poland
It maintains its presence, especially because of its family profile.
The market with the longest average stay of all the markets analysed.

Italy
Growth of 8% in overnight stays compared to the previous year.
The group of friends is the predominant segment, with a greater presence of women.

Ireland
Great increase in interest in Lloret de Mar, with an increase of 14% in overnight stays compared to the same period last year, especially in May, with a growth of 108%. Spending at the destination is the highest.

Nordic countries
Interest is growing in all the Nordic countries, although the lack of connectivity makes it more difficult to translate this into overnight stays.