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Costa Blanca targets Canadian golfers and wellness tourists as US travel drops
High-spending visitors from Canada stay 10-14 nights, spending double what Alicante currently collects
Canadians are increasingly choosing Spain over the USA for their holidays, and the Costa Blanca is ready to capitalise on this shift. The latest Outbound Canada report for 2025 shows that 30.1 million Canadians travelled abroad between January and December, but cross-border trips to the US fell by 20.9% compared to the previous year, while trips to overseas destinations increased by 9.6%.The reason is clear: Canadians have begun eliminating the USA from their vacation options due to the US president's abrupt statements and decisions. Geopolitics has always influenced tourism, but the Trump era has given it a new dimension.
In 2024 alone, a total of 643,711 Canadian tourists visited Spain, with an estimated 10% visiting the Valencian Community. In 2025, the average spending per Canadian tourist in Spain was €2,246 and the average daily spending was €261, which is double what Alicante now collects.
What makes this market particularly attractive is the length of stay. Unlike the typical package of 7 days and 5 green fees purchased by Europeans, Canadians and Americans are opting for 10-14 nights and don't stay in the same place.
Golf is a major draw for the Costa Blanca. While there are 320,000 players in Spain, there are 6 million in Canada. In Quebec alone, there are 800,000 registered players, the same number as in all of Germany.
This week marks a key moment in the push to attract these visitors. Turisme, Costa Blanca, the Golf Course Association and Hosbec are attending Montreal with the focus on attracting tourists who spend twice as much and stay twice as long. The Valencian Community, together with the Spanish Tourism Office in Toronto, is bringing together travel agents, tour operators and specialized media to build contacts.
While the Costa Blanca doesn't have the direct flight service that Valencia enjoys, it boasts golf courses and exclusive health and wellness centres that align perfectly with Canadian tourists.
"We need to position ourselves," says Fede Fuster, president of Hosbec. The president of the hotel association is convinced that compared to other destinations with greater advertising resources, we need to make a concerted effort to attract high-spending tourists who are looking for experiences like those they can find in our region.
The destination is also pushing for better flight connections. Although Marián Cano's team has never wanted to comment on whether Alicante or Manises would be the preferred airport, they are indeed working on expanding flights to Canada and, above all, finally opening the airport doors to the United States.
Alongside golf, the Tourist Board has focused on language tourism and premium tourism related to health and wellness, where prominent companies such as the Shah Hotel have already participated. Turespaña's report confirms that the impact of strained relations has meant that in 2026, the highest number of trips by Canadians to foreign destinations other than the United States was recorded.
You might also be interested in: Alicante tourism breaks the €1 billion mark in April for the first time
Image: Pixabay
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