Hotels in Baix Llobregat received 334,087 tourists between April and June 2026, 1.4% fewer than in the same quarter last year, while overnight stays rose by 2% to 781,950, according to figures from the Baix Llobregat Regional Observatory (OCBL) reported on Thursday.

For hotel operators, restaurants and tourism workers across the comarca, the pattern means fuller hotels despite fewer arrivals. Tourism supported 37,075 registered jobs in Baix Llobregat in 2025, about 10% of all employment in the area.

Hotel occupancy reached 75% in the second quarter, two percentage points above the equivalent period in 2025. The region had an average of 11,459 hotel beds available during the quarter, broadly unchanged year on year.

Fewer guests, 16,488 more nights

The 334,087 hotel guests recorded from April to June represented 4,805 fewer visitors than a year earlier. They generated 16,488 additional overnight stays.

  • Tourists: 334,087, down 1.4% year on year.
  • Hotel nights: 781,950, up 2% year on year.
  • Occupancy: 75%, up two percentage points.

If the second-quarter trend continues through December, Baix Llobregat could finish 2026 with about 1.22 million tourists, just below the 1,233,912 recorded in 2025. Overnight stays could approach 2.8 million, around 55,000 more than last year.

That would lift the average stay from about 2.22 nights per tourist in 2025 to 2.30 nights in 2026. The figures are a projection, rather than a final annual result.

Business travel remains the main reason for hotel visits

Business travel accounted for 48% of hotel visits in the second quarter. Holidays represented 27%, while 18.5% were for other reasons.

International visitors generated 51% of overnight stays, although their share was nine percentage points lower than in the second quarter of 2025. Catalan visitors accounted for 24% of nights, an increase of 6.5 points.

Visitors from the United States and Canada accounted for 8% of overnight stays. The United Kingdom and France each represented 6.2%, followed by Madrid at 5.8% and Germany at 4.8%.

The United Kingdom's share fell by three percentage points from a year earlier and France's by 2.8 points. Visitors from the Balearic Islands increased their share by 1.2 points.

Tourism tax income is concentrated in five municipalities

Castelldefels accounts for more than 32% of Baix Llobregat's revenue from the Tourist Accommodation Tax, known in Catalonia as the IEET. The levy is charged on eligible overnight stays in paid tourist accommodation.

  • Castelldefels: more than 32% of regional IEET revenue.
  • El Prat de Llobregat: 18%.
  • Sant Boi de Llobregat: 14%.
  • Viladecans: 11%.
  • Cornellà de Llobregat: 10%.

Restaurants and food-and-drink services made up more than 75% of tourism businesses in Baix Llobregat in 2025 and 57% of tourism-sector jobs. Air transport accounted for 16% of tourism employment, while sports and entertainment activities represented 15.6% of jobs.

Accommodation itself represented 3% of tourism businesses and 4% of tourism jobs. Creative, artistic and entertainment activities employed 765 people and accounted for 9% of self-employed people working in the sector.

Reported by lavanguardia.com, La Vanguardia Barcelona.