Canaries continue to lead tourism arrivals in Spain

The Canary Islands lead the foreign tourist arrivals in Spain so far this year (2011) from January to March, with 2.7 million arrivals to the islands. The latest figures indicate that the archipelago is the leading destination for international visitors who choose Spain, representing 30.6% of the total amount of arrivals in the first quarter, followed by Cataluna (22.9%) and Andalucia (13, 6%). the majority of the arrivals (79.9%) chose to arrival by air, 3.4% more than the same period of 2010. With respect to accommodation, 63% of overseas visitors stayed in hotels, representing an increase of 2.3%. In the nation as a whole, Spain received in the first three months of the year 9 million international tourists, representing a 2.9% rise.