Hotel occupancy for Malaga summer fair exceeds forecasts and climbs above 90%

Malaga has again proved that its annual 'feria' summer fair never fails to attract hundreds-of-thousands of people from all over the world.

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It's backed up in the numbers, with hotel occupancy data better than expected for this year's fair. On Sunday 13 August, mayor Francisco de la Torre, revealed that there will be more than 90% hotel occupancy this year, some 2% more than in 2022. "The forecasts have been improving for the better, as is natural, in recent days," he said. De la Torre also pointed out that occupancy of five-star hotels is above 95%, and four-star hotels have exceeded 90%.

The mayor pointed out that strong occupancy numbers in five-star hotels is a sign of an improvement in the quality of tourism, one of the council's goals. "We want the fair to be an event of excellence, quality in every way, both in the fairground as in the city centre," he said.

On the first Friday and Saturday of the fair, visits to the city's tourist offices grew by 37%, to 7,369 visitors, compared to 2019, and 5% higher than 2022, which was a very successful year for tourism in Malaga. De la Torre pointed out that 50% of visitors are Spanish and the other half, foreigners. Among the international visitors, most are from the United Kingdom, France and Italy. While most of the Spaniards are coming from Madrid and the Valencian region.

The mayor also said there will be four cruise ships arriving during the days of the feria, and put the total number of cruise passengers that will disembark in the port at around 13,000.

The president of the Junta de Andalucía, Juanma Moreno, also visited the fairgrounds on Sunday and pointed out the importance of the Malaga fair for the economy of the region. "It is one of the great economic drivers of Andalucía," he said. "It is a great showcase of what we are. A hospitable, open, fun, cheerful city where one can enjoy our gastronomy and our folklore. The fair is a source of great satisfaction," he added.