Russian tourists in Marbella up 3%
The arrival of Russian tourists to Marbella via Malaga Airport has increased by 40% between May and August of this year, compared to the same period in 2012, and there has also been an increase in international arrivals of tourists from UK, Germany or France. The Councilor for Tourism, José Luis Hernánd ez, stated today that, despite the fact Russian tourism represents only 3% of international tourism, and thus any variation means an large increase, it is a "new and powerful" market, in which Marbella ranks high. He highlighted the growth experienced by other markets during the same period, as is the case with British tourism, which has increased 4%. French and German tourism grew 3%, according to data from the Municipal Delegation of Tourism, based on the number of visits of foreign tourists to tourist offices and hotel occupancy.
With regard to behavior of the sector regarding nationalities, Spanish tourists’ numbers are about even with foreign tourists during the last three months, since its numbers have increased from 20% during June to 45% during the month of August, according to estimates from Marbella's Tourism Delegation. Regarding hotel occupation in August, the Mayor has said that it hovered around 82%, two points higher than during the same period in 2012, with "full occupancy peaks" happening during the long weekend, according to data provided by the Association of Hoteliers of the Costa del Sol (Aehcos). Average stay has also improved and has raised from 3.36 days in August 2006 to 5.4 in August 2013, according to data from Aehcos.
Marbella Taxis has been offering a high level transfer service from Malaga Airport to Marbella to the Russian tourist sector for many years and has many regular Russian clients who also own property in Marbella.