- 3.1m tourism workers, 13.9pc of total employment
- 110,712 new workers added, 3.7pc year-on-year growth
- Hospitality added 70,409 jobs, food and drink 49,163
- Self-employment grew 1.8pc, salaried workers 4.1pc
- Andalusia added most jobs, Valencian Community highest relative growth
Spain’s tourism-related workforce reached an all-time summer high of nearly 3.1m registered workers in July 2026, capturing 13.9pc of the country’s total employment market. Data released by Turespaña has demonstrated that the tourism labour market outpaced the broader national economy, achieving a 3.7pc year-on-year increase by adding 110,712 workers compared to July 2025. The surge has been overwhelmingly powered by the hospitality sector, which absorbed the lion’s share of new summer jobs.
The hospitality industry added 70,409 new registrations, with food and beverage services outpacing accommodations by adding 49,163 positions while accommodation services contributed an additional 21,246 jobs. Salaried workers comprised 85pc of the sector and grew by 4.1pc year-on-year, while independent operators grew by 1.8pc. The self-employment growth had been particularly visible in a 17pc expansion of independent accommodation providers as homeowners turned residential spaces into tourism rentals.
Travel agencies and tour operators registered a drop of 1,587 workers, though Spain’s Ministry of Industry and Tourism clarified this as a statistical distortion resulting from updates to the National Classification of Economic Activities, which reclassified specific digital or agency roles into alternative commercial categories. Employment expansion was recorded evenly across the country, with Andalusia registering the highest growth in absolute terms, scaling up its workforce by 12,320 workers, while the Valencian Community marked the highest relative growth at 5pc year-on-year.
