Big Data and Tourism New Indicators For Tourism Management - Daniel Patinìƒo PDF

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
FOR THE HOTEL INDUSTRY
BIG DATA AND

TOURISM:
NEW INDICATORS
FOR TOURISM
MANAGEMENT
Authors
Victor Oliver Sust
Enrique García Illera
Albert Solana Berengué
Roberto González García
María Victoria Peláez Alonso
Maria José Tomé Torres
Genis Roca Verard
Oriol Lloret Albert
Xavier Capellades Ramos
Pablo Rodríguez Rodríguez
Editorial coordination
Anna Miracle Fandos
Design and layout:

Hodei Ensunza
Maria Berga
A publication by:
and
This report is the property of Telefónica I+D and RocaSalvatella. Commercial use of
neither the original work nor any derivative works is permitted. Copying or diffusion
is not permitted without the express consent of Telefónica I+D and RocaSalvatella;
recognition and mention of its authors is also necessary.
Barcelona, May 2014
2 / 48
Index
1. Executive summary 4
2. Introduction 10
2.1. Purpose of the study 10
2.2. The problem of data for the tourist industry 10
2.3. Strengths for the tourism industry of using Big Data 12
3. Detailed analysis 13
3.1. Visitors 13
3.1.1. Comparison of visitors between Barcelona and Madrid 14
3.2. Length of stay 15
3.2.1 Average stay 15
3.2.2. Average stay in Barcelona 16
3.2.3. Average stay in Madrid 17
3.2.4. Comparison between the average stays in Barcelona and Madrid 18
3.2.5. Distribution of nationalities by length of stay 18
3.3. Travel between Madrid and Barcelona 21
3.4. Accommodation 23
3.4.1. Areas of the city 23
3.4.2. Distances from the city centre 27
3.5. Spending 28
3.5.1. Cumulative average spending by card throughout the stay 28
3.5.2. Average daily spending 30
3.5.3. Cumulative average spending on accommodation by card during 33
the stay
3.5.4. Average daily spending on accommodation 35
4. Specific recommendations
for hotels 37
4.1. Introduction 37
4.2. Spending-based hotel category methodology 37
4.3. Overall recommendations 38
4.4. Specific action for hotels in Barcelona 39
4.4.1. 5-star hotels in Barcelona (total daily price of more than €140) 39
4.4.2. 4-star hotels in Barcelona (total daily price between €100 and €140) 40
4.4.3. 3-star hotels in Barcelona (total daily price less than €100) 40
4.5. Specific action for hotels in Madrid 41
4.5.1. 5-star hotels in Madrid (total daily price of more than €140) 41
4.5.2. 4-star hotels in Madrid (total daily price between €100 and €140) 42
4.5.3. 3-star hotels in Madrid (total daily price less than €100) 43
5. Methodological note 44
5.1. Description of the datasets 44
5.1.1. BBVA dataset 44
5.1.2. Telefónica’s dataset 45
5.2. Privacy 46
6. Annex 47
6.1. List of tables 47
6.2. List of figures 48
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1. Executive summary
1. Executive
summary
Big Data: the potential for Big Data and Tourism is a study produced by Telefónica and RocaSalvatella,
data to improve service and which provides a new methodology for improved analysis and knowledge of
business management the Spanish tourism industry.
The purpose of the study is to make use of the opportunities for the sector,
in particular the hotel industry, of incorporating macrodata collected
from the electronic activity of anonymous foreign tourists into their
market research.
Analysis of the vast amount of data produced by digital activity opens up a

wide range of opportunities for companies to enhance the services they
offer and the management of their business. This study is a first step in
understanding the possibilities of Big Data. In this specific case, we are
looking to contribute and add value to what is a key sector for the Spanish
economy. However, it can be replicated in another economic and social
sectors.
The document has been able One of the document’s main strengths lies in having been able to gather
to gather together and cross- together and cross-reference data from two different companies:
reference data from two Telefónica Móviles España and BBVA. The former provided data about the
different companies: Telefónica activities of foreign handsets that used Telefónica’s infrastructure between
Móviles España and BBVA 7 and 21 October 2012 in Madrid and Barcelona; while BBVA provided data
on electronic payments by foreign cards sent through the bank’s terminal
network in those cities during the same period. RocaSalvatella and
Telefónica I+D have worked on analysing the data and producing the report’s
conclusions and recommendations.
The set of tourists who visited Barcelona or Madrid during the analysed
period were selected from the following 21 countries included in the study:
France, Italy, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Portugal, Switzerland,
Sweden, Poland, the United States, Belgium, Russia, Norway, Brazil,
Denmark, Argentina, Japan, China, India, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia
and Singapore. 680,928 mobile handsets and 168,921 cards were included in
the study.
Conclusions based on actual Previous studies on tourism in Spain have mostly been based on surveys or
activity not on surveys or interviews with experts carried out by the Ministry of Industry, Energy and
stated intentions Tourism, the main public organisation, or by private companies. This means
that, generally speaking, the industry does not have real data about
tourists and can only take samples from the population as a whole.
4 / 48
In contrast, the innovative approach achieved through this study is to

introduce data based on real actions by users and not on surveys. In other
words, real actions have been analysed instead of stated intentions or
answers to questions.
This incorporates a type of information that increases knowledge of the

industry’s target market produced by the tourists themselves (their
mobile phone connecting to the telecom network and their bank card
connecting to the POS terminal) into a tourism sector study.
A methodology that guarantees The conclusions drawn have been generated from anonymised, aggregate
users’ privacy data that have then been extrapolated through a statistical process
ensuring they are completely disassociated pursuant to Spanish law (LOPD
15/1999 and its developing regulations, RD 1720/2007, and Ley General
de Telecomunicaciones Ley 32/2003). This completely prevents the
identification of any individual based on the data used and so guarantees
users’ privacy.
Main Conclusions Many different indicators were used to carry out the study. On the one hand,
we studied indicators traditionally used by the tourism industry and others
that could not be quantified without Big Data analysis. The study has made it
possible to obtain information about the following aspects:
• Visitors’ main country of origin

• The country of origin of tourists who opt for Madrid and those who opt for
Barcelona
• Length of stay by country of origin
• Journeys between the two destinations, Barcelona and Madrid
• Days and areas where foreign visitors prefer to stay
• Average daily spending and cumulative spending throughout the entire stay.
The main conclusions drawn concerning each of the variables analysed are
set out below. Although the report doesn’t deal with absolute numbers, it
could help to gain a further insight on key points:
Visitors’ countries of origin

The main tourists who visit Barcelona and Madrid are French, Italian and
British. These three nationalities made up 50% of the total number of visitors
during the analysed period.
It is not until the ninth position that we find a non-European country, the
United States, with a volume of around 4% of total visitors.
In terms of preference between the two cities, Argentinians, Brazilians and

Portuguese prioritise Madrid while visitors from Nordic countries choose
Barcelona.
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Length of stay:
Overall, the average stay in the cities analysed is a total of 2.24 days.
Generally speaking, the length of stay increases by 20% if the visitor arrived
on a working day.
Nordic visitors tend to stay longer than tourists from countries such as Russia,
Saudi Arabia or the Arab Emirates. Japanese and American citizens limit their
visit to 2 days.
In Barcelona, visitors from Nordic countries (Denmark, Norway and Sweden)

stay longer than average while in Madrid people from Singapore, India and
Saudi Arabia stay longer than average.
People from the same country may behave in contrasting ways depending on
the city. For example, India is one of the countries with the longest stays in
Madrid but the shortest stays in Barcelona.
Travel between Madrid and Barcelona:

Out of the total number of mobile phones analysed, 66% stayed in Barcelona
while 31% stayed in Madrid. Just 4% were in both cities during the analysed
period.
Accommodation:
As a general rule, visitors from countries farther away such as Japan, China
and Brazil tend to stay in hotels closer to the centre of the cities, while
visitors from nearby countries such as Portugal, France and Belgium choose
accommodation farther from the centre.
Visitors to Barcelona are mainly concentrated in 3 areas of the city (Ciutat

Vella, Eixample and Sant Martí) and also outside of the city.
In Madrid there is one predominant district, Centro, in the city centre, where
almost half of visitors to the city stay. The other half is very fragmented
among the rest of the districts.
Visitors from non-European countries and non-Latin American countries

mostly stay in 5-star hotels. Switzerland is an exception as it is also in the
5-star list.
Visitors from European countries mainly stay in 4-star hotels, except for
French and Portuguese visitors who stay in lower category hotels.
Brazil and Argentina are the only non-European countries that stay in 3-star
or lower accommodation.
Sweden is a surprise in that unlike the rest of Nordic countries they also stay
in 3-star accommodation together with the French and Portuguese.
6 / 48
Spending:
Average cumulative card spending by each visitor during their stay was €161.5
and average card spending per day was €58.5.
The visitors who spent the most during their entire stay were those from
Singapore, China, Japan and the Arab Emirates in that order. Visitors who
spent the least money were those from nearby countries such as Portugal
and France, Nordic countries such as Sweden and Denmark, and Argentina.
As far as the difference between cities is concerned, visitors from Denmark,

Norway and Sweden spend more in Madrid than in Barcelona. Tourists from
India and Singapore spend more in Barcelona.
Spending on accommodation
If one analyses only spending on accommodation, average spending for the
entire stay is around €300 and the average daily expenditure or price per
night is €129.
It is important to highlight that average spending on accommodation is higher

than overall average spending on all expenditure headings. That is because the
total volume of transactions is far higher than the volume of transactions for
accommodation alone. The exact figures are given in point 3.5.3.
The group of countries from the Middle East and India spend practically twice
as much on accommodation as the rest of countries. Argentinians, French,
Portuguese and Brazilians spend the least on accommodation. That is in
spite of the fact that 10% of tourists from these countries stay in Madrid or
Barcelona for more than 6 days.
Spending on accommodation by tourists in Barcelona is notably higher

than in Madrid (around 20%). Part of this additional spending could be due
to visitors staying longer in Barcelona than in Madrid, 2.28 days versus 2.15
days. One should also consider that hotels in Barcelona could be more
expensive than those in Madrid.
7 / 48
Main recommendations for the hotel industry:
Based on the conclusions drawn from data analysis, the study ends with a
series of tactical and strategic recommendations for hotel managers.
These recommendations focus on:
• Winning more customers and pinpointing the countries on which it is

recommended to focus marketing
• Detecting areas of the city in which commercial transactions are carried out,
Specially, those referring to accommodation.
• Ensuring you provide an attractive product suited to customers’ true needs

(ideal length of package offers, information about complementary services
demanded by nationalities, etc.)
Obviously, any decision in this area should be based on more in-depth

analysis covering a longer timeframe, which would make it possible to show
seasonal and annual variations. The recommendations include a sample
of the kinds of applications that using these data sources could have in a
new business intelligence model in the industry.
France, Italy, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Portugal: win these
customers in their countries of origin.
Due to the volume of tourists they provide, it is necessary to work to win
customers in the following countries: France, Italy, the United Kingdom, the
Netherlands and Portugal.
When one analyses spending by people from these countries, both French and
Portuguese have a lower level of spending than people from other countries.
Therefore, it is recommended to carry out action to win customers through
intermediaries or, in any case, in a very segmented manner to ensure profitability,
as they have greater capillarity and expenditure is 100% variable for hotels.
Bear in mind that there is great potential for growth in BRIC countries
(Brazil, India, Russia and China). Madrid seems to have the greatest potential
for Brazilians and Chinese, while Barcelona has the greatest potential for
Russians. India is still a tiny market for both cities.
Finally, it is worth highlighting the purchasing power of visitors from China,

which are clearly luxury hotel customers.
Specific recommendations for We have observed the need to adapt action to win customers based on the
hotels in Barcelona hotel’s category and the country in which the action will be carried out. For
example, for 5-star hotels in Barcelona it is recommended to carry out action
to win customers in countries in the Arabian Peninsula, India and China and
for 3-star hotels lower-cost action is recommended in France, the Nordic
countries, Brazil and Argentina.
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In order to adapt to tourists’ real needs, depending on their nationality, a

central hotel should expect more visitors from Japan and countries in the
Arabian Peninsula. In contrast, French, Portuguese and Argentinian visitors
prefer to stay far from the centre at low prices.
It is relevant to know cumulative spending by nationality and which tourists

there are opportunities to sell products or services to nearby the hotel. For
example, visitors from China, Russia and Japan spend a considerable amount
in fashion shops and consume luxury products in Barcelona. These services
may be a new source of income.
Specific recommendations for 5-star hotels in Madrid that want to win customers should focus on countries
hotels in Madrid such as the United States, Switzerland, China and Japan. In contrast, 3-star
hotel should focus on neighbouring countries such as France, Italy and
Portugal but also far-away countries such as Brazil, Argentina and Singapore.
Although the conclusions mention that most visitors stay in the centre of
Madrid, analysis shows that a central location is not a determining factor for
visitors from the Arab Emirates or India.
Finally, it is recommended to adapt offers to stays of 2 or 3 nights depending

on the country of origin. For example, it is advisable to offer a 3-night package
to Indian visitors and a 2-night package to Russians.
It is also relevant to know cumulative spending by nationality and which

tourists the hotel may sell new added services to. For example, visitors from
China, Japan, the Arabian Peninsula and Russia spend significant amounts in
fashion shops and consume luxury products in Madrid. These services may
provide a new source of income.
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2. Introduction
2. Introduction
2.1. Purpose of the study The study has a two-fold objective: on the one hand, to demonstrate the
possibilities offered by analysing large amounts of data (an option that
technology has made possible only relatively recently) when making
decisions in an industry as important for the economy as tourism. On the
other hand, the aim is to make use of the datasets that large companies
such as BBVA and Telefónica can make available to society, which will
undoubtedly contribute to a general improvement in decision-making,
especially in urban environments.
In order to achieve these two aims, the study analyses, from a business
perspective, certain aspects of the behaviour of foreign visitors to Madrid
and Barcelona during a very limited period of time. It does so by using
duly aggregated and anonymised data, based on the location of base
stations to which mobile phones connect during the day and credit
card use. The conclusions were applied to one particular aspect of the
tourism industry: hotels. The end result is a set of highly-specific business
recommendations that a hotel could follow, which would show that
having and appropriately analysing such data is relevant when it comes to
making business decisions.
The specific aspects of visitor behaviour analysed are based on the following
categories:
• Visitors: how many come and where do they come from

• Length of stay: average time by nationality
• Travel between the two cities
• Preferred hotels
• Spending levels: overall and on accommodation
2.2. The problem of data Previous studies on tourism in Spain have mostly been based on surveys or
for the tourist industry interviews with experts carried out by the Ministry of Industry, Energy and
Tourism, the main public organisation, or by private companies.
One option for classifying these studies is to group them by the methodology
used to gather data or the data source on the understanding that studies
produced for the tourism industry come from data from regular samples that
are non-granular in space and time.
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2. Introduction
First of all, studies could be classified by the data gathering methodology:
• Surveys: available reports include Tourist Border Movements (FRONTUR),

Tourist Spending Surveys (EGATUR) and Spanish Tourist Movement
(FAMILITUR), etc.
• Interviews with industry experts using the Delphi method.
• Search engine trends: the Google Insight for Search tool currently offers a
service showing the volume of most repeated searches by countries and dates.
Studies could also be classified by source gathering data or by the organisation

gathering that data together:
• INE: Spanish Statistics Institute

• Eurostat: the European statistics office
• IET: Institute of Tourism Studies
• AENA: Spanish Airports and Air Navigation.
• RENFE (railway company)
• Spanish Port Authorities
• General and specialised consulting firms
• Banks
• Search engines
Apart from search engines, AENA, RENFE, Port Authorities and banks,
organisations that gather data use survey or interview methods, so they do not
have real data from tourists and can only take samples from the population as
a whole.
In some cases, such as FRONTUR, they estimate results from administrative

records kept by the Directorate-General of Traffic. This available administrative
information shows the number of vehicles that cross the border, so it is
necessary to estimate how many people are in each vehicle in order to convert
the number of vehicles into the number of people.
In other cases, companies such as AENA, RENFE and Port Authorities have
exact data about passengers who come to Spain by air, land or sea in their
databases. Although they are exact data, this information is only part of what
the tourism industry needs and must be cross-referenced against data on
tourists’ behaviour once they are in the country.
As far as search engines are concerned, the information they extract is based
on searches made by visitors before they arrive in the country. Although
increasing attention should be given to this new source of prediction, it does
not explain visitors’ behaviour during their stay in Spain.
11 / 48
2. Introduction
2.3. Strengths for the The innovative approach taken in producing this report has a set of
tourism industry of using advantages over traditional methodologies. These are as follows:
Big Data
• Reliability: the data used are based on users’ real actions not on surveys. In
other words, real actions have been analysed instead of stated intentions or
answers to questions.
• Representativeness: adding all of the information sources together, it can be

stated that the sample size contains the following:

• BBVA data: 15% of all transactions are carried out with cards belonging
to foreigners in the province of Madrid. 14% for the province of Barcelona.
In both cases, these percentages depend on the area of the province being
studied.
• Telefónica data: approximately one third of telephones whose SIM comes

from foreign operators end up registering on Telefónica España’s network.
That increases the sample base on which conventional research tends to be

based by several orders of magnitude.
• Information detail and segmentation capacity: the degree of space/time

focus and the ability to describe places and the people who visit them is
radically changed due to the sample size and its reliability.
• Hybridising data with other current or future sources: since they are
structured and geopositioned data, it is possible to cross-reference them
with other sources such as social media, open public data and others whether
currently in production or potential information sources that may be created
or released in the future.
• New information flows: a type of information that increases knowledge

of the industry’s target market produced by the tourists themselves (their
mobile phone connecting to the telecom network and their bank card
connecting to the POS terminal) is incorporated into a tourism sector study.
• Possibility of new business opportunities: the results of this analysis can

be contrasted with internal data from each tourism company to determine
whether the supply on offer in each area of the city is in tune with the tourists
who visit it.
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3. Detailed analysis
3. Detailed
analysis
3.1. Visitors By analysing the number of active telephones, by country, during the study
period, conclusions can be drawn about the main countries of origin of
tourists who visit us and their preferred destination, Madrid or Barcelona.
This list of 21 countries used throughout the report is not a continuous

ranking. Nationalities have been left out that were among the top 21 so as to
avoid redundant conclusions. Instead we gave room to other places of origin
that are representative of important supranational areas (Persian Gulf, South
America, etc.)
Table 1: Total Telephones % Telephones %

Country telephones in BCN BCN/TOTAL in MADRID MADRID/TOTAL
Unique telephones registered
FRANCE 117.014 83.901 71,7% 33.113 28,3%
(Telefónica data)
ITALY 114.108 75.146 65,9% 38.962 34,1%
UNITED KINGDOM 104.909 75.556 72,0% 29.353 28,0%
NETHERLANDS 63.256 47.393 74,9% 15.863 25,1%
PORTUGAL 39.784 15.569 39,1% 24.215 60,9%
SWITZERLAND 36.518 26.560 72,7% 9.958 27,3%
SWEDEN 29.325 21.714 74,0% 7.611 26,0%
POLAND 28.775 19.550 67,9% 9.225 32,1%
UNITED STATES 24.706 14.205 57,5% 10.501 42,5%
BELGIUM 24.050 16.105 67,0% 7.945 33,0%
RUSSIA 18.063 13.905 77,0% 4.158 23,0%
NORWAY 15.355 12.187 79,4% 3.168 20,6%
BRAZIL 13.274 5.140 38,7% 8.134 61,3%
DENMARK 12.708 10.555 83,1% 2.153 16,9%
ARGENTINA 10.028 3.636 36,3% 6.392 63,7%
JAPAN 8.981 5.485 61,1% 3.496 38,9%
CHINA 8.423 3.762 44,7% 4.661 55,3%
INDIA 3.231 1.715 53,1% 1.516 46,9%
UNITED ARAB
3.218 1.762 54,8% 1.456 45,2%
EMIRATES
SAUDI ARABIA 2.900 1.698 58,6% 1.202 41,4%

SINGAPORE 2.302 1.620 70,4% 682 29,6%
OVERALL TOTAL 680.928 457.164 67,1% 223.764 32,9%
Among the nationalities selected, French, Italian and British tourists were
the ones who visited us the most by far. These three countries together made
up 50% of the total number of visitors from the 21 countries analysed. This
applies similarly to each of the two cities analysed, Barcelona and Madrid.
The United States, which is ninth in the ranking, is the non-European Union
country with the highest number of visitors at 3.62% of the total.
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17%
51% FRANCE
Figure 1:
Distribution of visitors by ITALY
13%
country
(Telefónica data) UNITED KINGDOM
OTHER COUNTRIES
15%
3.1.1. Comparison of visitors Two out of three visitors choose Barcelona (67%) as a destination and one in
between Barcelona and three choose Madrid (33%).
Madrid
67%67%
33%33%
Figure 2:
Distribution of visitors between BARCELONA
BARCELONA
Barcelona and Madrid
(Telefónica data) MADRID
MADRID
When preferences between the two cities are compared by country of origin,
Argentinians, Brazilians and Portuguese prioritise Madrid as a destination
with percentages of more than 60% while visitors from Nordic countries
choose Barcelona with percentages of more than 75% of the total.
100%
Figure 3: 75%
City preference, Barcelona over 50%
Madrid 25%
(Telefónica data)
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14 / 48
3.2. Length of stay
3.2.1. Average stay Analysis of the number of active telephones by country during the study
period shows the average length of time that visitors stay in Spain. There are
significant differences between the length of visits to Madrid and Barcelona
by different nationalities.
Table 2: Country Average Total Stay

Average stay
DENMARK 2,98
(Telefónica data)
NORWAY 2,91
SWEDEN 2,87
SINGAPORE 2,72
RUSSIA 2,66
POLAND 2,66
BRAZIL 2,65
SAUDI ARABIA 2,63
NETHERLANDS 2,50
ARGENTINA 2,45
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES 2,30
CHINA 2,18
PORTUGAL 2,16
INDIA 2,15
UNITED KINGDOM 2,14
BELGIUM 2,13
ITALY 2,11
JAPAN 2,10
UNITED STATES 2,08
FRANCE 1,94
SWITZERLAND 1,91
TOTAL WEIGHTED AVERAGE 2,24
Overall, the total average stay by visitors from the 21 countries analysed
is 2.24 days. Generally speaking, the length of stay increases by 20% if the
visitor arrived on a working day.
The Nordic countries stand out in staying longer than more far-off countries
such as Russia, Saudi Arabia and the Arab Emirates. Visitors from France
and Switzerland are at the bottom of the table with the shortest stays. It is
surprising to see Japan and the United States at the bottom end of the table
with a stay of around 2 days.
People from the same country may behave in contrasting ways depending on
the city. For example, India is one of the countries with the longest stays in
Madrid but the shortest stays in Barcelona.
15 / 48
3.2.2. Average stay in

Barcelona
Average stay Average stay

Table 3: Country Average starting at starting on
stay a weekend a working day
Average stays in Barcelona
DENMARK 3,18 3,76 2,91
depending on the day on which
NORWAY 3,16 2,63 3,33
the visits start and the total
SWEDEN 2,94 2,66 3,19
(Telefónica data)
BRAZIL 2,92 2,47 3,1
RUSSIA 2,8 2,16 2,81
POLAND 2,77 2,41 2,85
ARGENTINA 2,73 2,53 2,75
SINGAPORE 2,72 2,59 2,78
SAUDI ARABIA 2,67 2,24 2,85
NETHERLANDS 2,55 2,43 2,6
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES 2,47 2,44 2,47
BELGIUM 2,23 1,71 2,42
PORTUGAL 2,22 1,74 2,35
UNITED KINGDOM 2,17 1,93 2,17
UNITED STATES 2,11 1,61 2,41
CHINA 2,1 1,82 2,17
JAPAN 2,08 2,04 2,05
ITALY 2,01 1,66 2,1
FRANCE 1,99 1,63 2,09
SWITZERLAND 1,95 1,72 2,03
INDIA 1,66 1,51 1,73
Visitors from Nordic countries (Denmark, Norway and Sweden) stay longer
than average in Barcelona, while France, Switzerland and India are the
countries with the shortest stays.
16 / 48
3.2.3. Average stay in Madrid
Average stay Average stay

Table 4: Country Average starting at starting on
stay a weekend a working day
Average stays in Madrid
SINGAPORE 2,73 2,98 2,61
depending on the day on which
INDIA 2,7 2,03 2,31
the visits start and the total
SWEDEN 2,67 1,83 2,9
(Telefónica data)
SAUDI ARABIA 2,58 2,14 2,83
BRAZIL 2,48 2,06 2,7
POLAND 2,42 2,16 2,43
NETHERLANDS 2,34 2,07 2,43
ARGENTINA 2,29 2,02 2,47
ITALY 2,29 1,83 2,5
CHINA 2,25 1,94 2,34
RUSSIA 2,2 1,89 2,3
JAPAN 2,14 2,12 2,17
PORTUGAL 2,12 1,55 2,29
UNITED STATES 2,04 1,64 2,24
DENMARK 1,99 1,9 2,08
NORWAY 1,97 1,55 2,2
BELGIUM 1,92 1,29 2,19
FRANCE 1,83 1,43 2
SWITZERLAND 1,81 1,52 1,99
Singapore, India and Saudi Arabia all stay longer than the average, while
nearby European countries (Switzerland, France and Belgium) have shorter
stays.
17 / 48
3.2.4. Comparison between

average stays in Barcelona
and Madrid
2,28 days
2,15 days
Figure 5:
Average stay in days in 2
Barcelona and Madrid

(Telefónica data)
–
BARCELONA MADRID
There is a slight difference between Barcelona and Madrid with slightly longer
stays in Barcelona (2.28 days) than in Madrid (2.15 days).
If one compares the difference in relation to the arrival day, in Barcelona the
length of stay is only 17% longer if the visitors arrive on a working day, while
that difference lengthens to 30% in Madrid.
3.2.5. Distribution of Another way of analysing stays by nationality is to show its distribution
nationalities by length of stay according to certain ranges of length of stay, which gives us more significant
information than just the average stay figure.
7%
7%
Figure 6: 14%
14%
<<11day
day
Overall distribution of length
of stay 11--33days
days
(Telefónica data)
33--66days
days
57%
57%
23%
23% >>66days
days
It is surprising how many visitors stay less than one day, 57%, which shortens
the average stay. It makes sense to think of them not only as visitors who
arrive and leave the country the same day but also as people who arrive in
Spain and then go to other places outside of Barcelona and Madrid.
In the following points we will analyse the distribution by countries within

these ranges of length of stay for each of the two cities.
18 / 48
Country < 1 day 1 -3 days 3 - 6 days > 6 days

Table 5:
SAUDI ARABIA 44,72% 28,09% 19,20% 7,99%
Percentage distribution of
ARGENTINA 44,41% 29,09% 17,92% 8,58%
the number of telephones in
BELGIUM 58,61% 21,11% 11,82% 8,46%
Barcelona according to four
BRAZIL 36,82% 34,08% 21,86% 7,25%
stay length ranges
CHINA 51,60% 36,06% 9,31% 3,04%
(Telefónica data)
DENMARK 36,51% 22,18% 33,22% 8,09%
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES 47,28% 28,53% 15,67% 8,51%
UNITED STATES 57,57% 23,67% 11,86% 6,90%
FRANCE 62,91% 21,00% 10,50% 5,59%
NETHERLANDS 47,58% 22,46% 21,39% 8,58%
INDIA 69,56% 16,02% 4,88% 9,54%
ITALY 61,95% 22,12% 10,08% 5,85%
JAPAN 55,37% 34,43% 6,82% 3,37%
NORWAY 33,86% 26,95% 28,41% 10,78%
POLAND 47,26% 25,17% 15,53% 12,05%
PORTUGAL 61,54% 19,33% 9,11% 10,02%
UNITED KINGDOM 56,81% 23,26% 13,65% 6,28%
RUSSIA 49,23% 18,27% 18,63% 13,87%
SINGAPORE 41,74% 29,92% 15,26% 13,08%
SWEDEN 36,59% 29,50% 24,87% 9,05%
SWITZERLAND 62,50% 20,51% 12,30% 4,69%
The countries with greatest representation in the category of stays lasting

less than one day are India, France and Switzerland. This category represents
55% of total visitors.
Tourists who stay between 1 and 3 days account for 23% of total visitors.
Chinese, Japanese and Brazilians stand out here.
Those who stay between 3 and 6 days account for 15% of the total and the
tourists with the highest percentages come from Nordic countries.
Just 6% of the total number of visitors spent more than 6 days visiting within
the two-week period analysed. Visitors from Russia, Singapore and Poland
stand out in this group as those who stay the longest.
100%
Figure 7: 90%
80%
Distribution by days spent in
70%
Barcelona 60%
(Telefónica data) 50%
40%
> 6 days 30%

3 - 6 days 20%
1 - 3 days 10%
< 1 day
0%
% Telephones
A
IL
EM A R K
ED T E S
ES
PO Y
ND
NG L
M
NG SIA
D
AL
A
NC
ND
OR
BI
IN
IN
DI
AN
DE
PA
IU
DO
AZ
RW
ED U G
AT
LA
S
RA
IT
IN
NT
CH
A
LG
NM
NE FR A
JA
E
AP
LA
RL
BR
RU
ST
IR
SW SW
IT RT
NO
IA
GE
BE
ER
ZE
DE
KI
UN P O
UD
AR
TH
IT
SI
AB
IT
SA
UN
AR
ED
IT
UN
19 / 48
Country < 1 day 1 -3 days 3 - 6 days > 6 days

Table 6:
SAUDI ARABIA 46,18% 30,33% 14,71% 8,78%
Percentage distribution of the
ARGENTINA 59,55% 18,00% 12,65% 9,80%
number of telephones in Madrid
BELGIUM 67,76% 16,38% 8,18% 7,68%
according to four stay length
BRAZIL 53,55% 21,92% 14,85% 9,67%
ranges
CHINA 49,33% 31,84% 15,41% 3,42%
(Telefónica data)
DENMARK 62,82% 19,10% 12,64% 5,44%
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES 60,00% 23,17% 10,92% 5,92%
UNITED STATES 62,59% 17,47% 12,45% 7,48%
FRANCE 65,99% 20,15% 8,58% 5,29%
NETHERLANDS 54,65% 21,69% 17,86% 5,81%
INDIA 40,55% 28,89% 28,48% 2,08%
ITALY 52,83% 26,17% 14,07% 6,93%
JAPAN 46,07% 41,36% 10,45% 2,12%
NORWAY 60,81% 22,23% 12,82% 4,15%
POLAND 56,13% 22,45% 11,71% 9,71%
PORTUGAL 64,31% 18,04% 6,93% 10,72%
UNITED KINGDOM 60,70% 22,71% 10,85% 5,74%
RUSSIA 57,95% 22,23% 13,21% 6,60%
SINGAPORE 40,56% 36,19% 15,73% 7,52%
SWEDEN 54,36% 21,69% 12,60% 11,35%
SWITZERLAND 67,81% 17,16% 9,98% 5,05%
The countries with the highest percentages in the category of stays lasting
less than one day are Switzerland, Belgium and France. This category
accounts for 59% of total visitors.
Tourists from Japan, Singapore and China stand out in the set of stays lasting
1 to 3 days, which accounts for 22% of total visitors.
Those who stay between 3 and 6 days account for 15% of the total and
the countries with the highest percentages are India, the Netherlands and
Singapore.
7% of the total number of visitors spent more than 6 days visiting within the
two-week period analysed. Visitors from Sweden, Portugal and Argentina
stand out in this group as those who stay the longest.
100%
Figure 8: 90%
80%
Distribution by days spent in
70%
Madrid 60%
(Telefónica data) 50%
40%
> 6 days 30%

3 - 6 days 20%
1 - 3 days 10%
< 1 day
0%
% Telephones
A
IL
EM A R K
ED T E S
ES
PO Y
ND
NG L
M
NG SIA
D
AL
A
NC
ND
OR
BI
IN
IN
DI
AN
DE
PA
IU
DO
AZ
RW
ED U G
AT
LA
S
RA
IT
IN
NT
CH
A
LG
NM
NE FR A
JA
E
AP
LA
RL
BR
RU
ST
IR
SW SW
IT RT
NO
IA
GE
BE
ER
ZE
DE
KI
UN P O
UD
AR
TH
IT
SI
AB
IT
SA
UN
AR
ED
IT
UN
20 / 48
3.3. Travel between We analysed the number of telephones that travelled between the two cities.
Madrid and Barcelona This gives us an idea of the mobility of tourists between them. In the table
below for example, B shows the telephone does not leave Barcelona and
B-M-B shows the telephone moved to Madrid and back to Barcelona.
Table 7: Country B B M B M B M M B M B M
Travel between cities
SAUDI ARABIA 55,0 % 2,7 % 0,4 % 36,4 % 4,8 % 0,7 %
(B-Barcelona, M-Madrid)
ARGENTINA 26,3 % 7,8 % 0,4 % 58,1 % 5,2 % 2,1 %
expressed in percentages.
BELGIUM 66,6 % 0,5 % 0,1 % 32,1 % 0,6 % 0,1 %
For example, B shows the
BRAZIL 28,5 % 6,3 % 0,4 % 54,9 % 7,6 % 2,4 %
telephone does not leave
CHINA 36,4 % 6,1 % 0,6 % 48,7 % 7,6 % 0,5 %
Barcelona and B-M-B shows the
DENMARK 82,9 % 0,4 % 0,2 % 16,0 % 0,5 % 0,1 %
telephone moved to Madrid and
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES 53,2 % 1,4 % 0,5 % 43,4 % 1,2 % 0,3 %
back to Barcelona
UNITED STATES 54,8 % 2,7 % 0,3 % 38,9 % 2,7 % 0,6 %
(Telefónica data)
FRANCE 71,2 % 0,8 % 0,3 % 26,9 % 0,7 % 0,1 %
NETHERLANDS 74,6 % 0,5 % 0,1 % 24,1 % 0,6 % 0,1 %
INDIA 50,1 % 2,0 % 0,4 % 43,6 % 3,1 % 0,9 %
ITALY 65,2 % 0,9 % 0,4 % 32,7 % 0,8 % 0,1 %
JAPAN 52,2 % 11,5 % 0,5 % 25,0 % 10,3 % 0,7 %
NORWAY 79,1 % 0,6 % 0,1 % 19,6 % 0,4 % 0,1 %
POLAND 65,3 % 1,9 % 1,7 % 26,1 % 4,8 % 0,3 %
PORTUGAL 34,6 % 3,1 % 0,5 % 58,2 % 2,6 % 0,9 %
UNITED KINGDOM 71,6 % 0,7 % 0,1 % 26,8 % 0,7 % 0,1 %
RUSSIA 76,0 % 1,4 % 1,6 % 19,5 % 1,3 % 0,2 %
SINGAPORE 65,8 % 5,0 % 2,9 % 18,8 % 6,6 % 0,9 %
SWEDEN 73,8 % 0,5 % 0,2 % 25,2 % 0,3 % 0,0 %
SWITZERLAND 72,4 % 0,6 % 0,2 % 26,3 % 0,6 % 0,1 %
Out of the total number of mobile phones analysed, 66% stayed in Barcelona
while 31% stayed in Madrid. These figures are in line with those in the first
section Comparison of visitors between Barcelona and Madrid.
Therefore, 96% of tourists stay in the city they arrived at. So direct mobility
between the two cities does not appear to be very high, although they could
visit other cities not included in the study. Just 4% of the total number of
visitors visited both cities, Madrid and Barcelona.
There are exceptions when visitors are analysed by their country of origin.
Japanese, Brazilians and Argentinians are the tourists that had the greatest
tendency to visit both cities.
Danish, Norwegians and Russians stand out for their preference to visit
Barcelona instead of Madrid, while Portuguese, Argentinians and Brazilians
have a preference for Madrid far above the average.
21 / 48
As far as travel between cities is concerned, 1.3% of tourists who arrive at

Barcelona end up visiting Madrid. The same happens in reverse, 1.3% of
visitors who initially arrive at Madrid end their trip in Barcelona.
Japanese, Argentinian and Brazilian tourists stand out as having a far higher
tendency than the rest to visit Madrid once they are in Barcelona.
As far as travel from Madrid to Barcelona is concerned, Japanese, Chinese

and Brazilians stand out as being far above the average.
There is a small percentage of visitors, around 4%, who travel between the
two cities more than once.
22 / 48
3.4. Accommodation
3.4.1. Areas of the city Based on credit card data we have found the areas in Madrid and Barcelona
where visitors stay.
Accommodation preferences by areas in Barcelona
In the city of Barcelona there are three districts that provide accommodation
for most visitors, Ciutat Vella (28%), Eixample (24%) and Sant Martí (21%). One
in four visitors sleep outside the city.
BARCELONA PROVINCIA
Sarrià - Sant Gervasi
Horta - Guinardó
Sants - Montjuïc
Ciutat Vella
Nou Barris
Sant Martí
Les Corts
Eixample
Gràcia
País
Table 8:
SAUDI ARABIA 79% 5% 5% 10% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 2%
Distribution of accommodation
ARGENTINA 18% 24% 21% 3% 1% 2% 0% 2% 0% 29%
by district in Barcelona
BELGIUM 33% 18% 18% 3% 1% 1% 0% 0% 0% 24%
(BBVA data)
BRAZIL 16% 15% 36% 7% 5% 1% 1% 0% 0% 18%
CHINA 24% 27% 26% 3% 2% 3% 2% 3% 0% 11%
DENMARK 35% 16% 24% 2% 1% 2% 0% 0% 0% 20%
UNITED ARAB
44% 20% 16% 4% 0% 2% 4% 0% 0% 10%
EMIRATES
UNITED STATES 26% 39% 20% 3% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 10%

FRANCE 20% 13% 21% 3% 3% 1% 0% 0% 0% 38%
NETHERLANDS 32% 18% 21% 1% 1% 2% 2% 0% 0% 24%
INDIA 46% 21% 19% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 15%
ITALY 28% 21% 19% 4% 1% 3% 1% 0% 0% 23%
JAPAN 20% 48% 13% 6% 1% 0% 2% 2% 1% 8%
NORWAY 27% 30% 15% 2% 3% 1% 0% 0% 0% 22%
POLAND 29% 19% 20% 1% 0% 3% 3% 0% 0% 24%
PORTUGAL 8% 20% 19% 1% 1% 1% 2% 0% 0% 48%
UNITED KINGDOM 32% 19% 25% 4% 1% 1% 0% 0% 0% 17%
RUSSIA 28% 23% 25% 3% 1% 1% 1% 0% 0% 17%
SINGAPORE 20% 40% 23% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 17%
SWEDEN 48% 16% 17% 2% 3% 0% 1% 0% 0% 14%
SWITZERLAND 37% 20% 23% 1% 1% 0% 0% 0% 0% 18%
TOTAL 28% 24% 21% 3% 1% 1% 1% 0% 0% 21%
23 / 48
% Porcentage
of overnight stays
Figure 9:
30%
Percentage of overnight stays
by district in Barcelona
(BBVA data) 20%
10%
0%
la
tí
ts
is
ia
si
ïc
pl
rd
CI
ar
va
rr
t ju
àc
l
or
Ve
Ba
IN
na
M
er
sC
Gr
on
xa
at
OV
nt
ui
tG
u
Le
M
ut
Ei
No
Sa
-G
PR
an
s-
Ci
a
-S
nt
A
rt
ON
Sa
Ho
ià
EL
rr
Sa
RC
BA
Most visitors from Saudi Arabia stay in Ciutat Vella, followed by almost half of
visitors from Sweden and India.
As far as Japanese are concerned, almost half of them stay in Eixample,

followed by the visitors from Singapore (40%) and the United States (39%).
The third district by number of overnight stays is Sant Martí, where 36% of
Brazilians and a quarter of Chinese and British stay.
Practically one in four visitors stays outside the city of Barcelona. The main
countries in this group are Portugal, France and Argentina.
24 / 48
Accommodation preferences by areas in Madrid
In Madrid there is one predominant district, Centro, in the city centre, where
almost half (44%) of visitors to the city stay. The other half is very fragmented
among the rest of the districts.
Fuencarral-El Pardo
MADRID PROVINCIA
Moncloa-Aravaca
Villa de Vallecas
Ciudad Lineal
Carabanchel
Arganzuela
Salamanca
ChamartÍn
Villaverde
Chamberí
San Blas
Barajas
Tetuán
Centro
Retiro
Table 9: País
SAUDI ARABIA 46% 8% 8% 12% 4% 4% 4% 0% 8% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 8%
Distribution of accommodation
ARGENTINA 55% 20% 4% 2% 4% 2% 2% 0% 0% 2% 2% 1% 0% 0% 0% 7%
by district in Madrid
BELGIUM 34% 18% 8% 8% 5% 3% 5% 2% 2% 2% 0% 1% 0% 0% 0% 12%
(BBVA data)
BRAZIL 45% 15% 11% 4% 3% 5% 2% 4% 1% 1% 2% 0% 0% 0% 0% 5%
CHINA 40% 10% 12% 10% 2% 8% 5% 3% 3% 1% 0% 4% 0% 0% 0% 3%
DENMARK 47% 8% 9% 5% 5% 2% 2% 4% 8% 0% 3% 0% 0% 1% 0% 5%
UNITED ARAB
27% 13% 27% 2% 5% 2% 7% 7% 5% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 4%
EMIRATES
UNITED STATES 52% 9% 6% 4% 8% 6% 2% 2% 1% 3% 1% 0% 1% 0% 0% 5%
FRANCE 34% 11% 13% 8% 6% 3% 4% 3% 3% 0% 1% 1% 1% 0% 0% 11%
NETHERLANDS 45% 14% 10% 6% 3% 4% 1% 1% 1% 1% 2% 1% 1% 0% 0% 9%
INDIA 24% 13% 9% 9% 2% 11% 16% 3% 3% 2% 0% 3% 3% 0% 0% 2%
ITALY 54% 10% 7% 6% 3% 6% 3% 2% 0% 1% 1% 1% 0% 0% 0% 7%
JAPAN 41% 16% 2% 5% 9% 5% 13% 3% 1% 2% 1% 1% 0% 0% 0% 2%
NORWAY 38% 5% 19% 1% 9% 8% 4% 4% 4% 0% 3% 0% 0% 1% 1% 4%
POLAND 44% 6% 17% 13% 1% 2% 0% 0% 3% 1% 4% 0% 0% 0% 0% 8%
PORTUGAL 21% 9% 16% 13% 9% 10% 3% 0% 1% 1% 2% 1% 1% 1% 0% 14%
UNITED KINGDOM 37% 13% 12% 4% 5% 5% 7% 2% 2% 1% 1% 1% 0% 0% 0% 9%
RUSSIA 59% 9% 7% 5% 6% 3% 0% 0% 0% 2% 2% 1% 0% 0% 0% 7%
SINGAPORE 69% 0% 6% 0% 6% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 6% 0% 0% 13%
SWEDEN 53% 8% 10% 2% 3% 6% 3% 5% 3% 1% 0% 1% 0% 0% 0% 8%
SWITZERLAND 46% 10% 11% 6% 6% 6% 5% 2% 1% 1% 0% 1% 0% 0% 0% 5%
TOTAL 44% 11% 10% 6% 6% 5% 4% 2% 1% 1% 1% 1% 0% 0% 0% 8%
25 / 48
% Porcentage
of overnight stays
Figure 10:
Percentage of overnight stays
40%
by district in Madrid
(BBVA data) 30%
20%
10%
0%
- E de
do
am a
í
V i - A ea l
Va ca
ga as
ba la
am e l
Te n
c a V ill á n
ro
A
as
o n da d b e r
ja
tí
t ir
CI
Ch h
e
nt
Bl
A r lle c
an
de va
tu
a l ve r
ar
ra
ar
oa L in
C a nzu
nc
IN
Re
Ce
lla r a
lP
n
m
Ba
OV
a
Sa
la
Ch
ra
PR
Sa
u
D
Ci
rr
cl
RI
AD
en
M
M
Fu
Visitors from Singapore, Russia and Argentina have a greater preference for
the Centro area with percentages of 69%, 59% and 55% respectively.
Just 8% of visitors stayed outside of the city; this percentage is slightly higher
for visitors from Portugal, Singapore and Belgium.
Comparison between Barcelona and Madrid in terms of overnight stays

inside and outside of the city
Barcelona Madrid
100% 92%
Figure 11:
79%
Percentage of overnight stays 75%
inside and outside of the city
(BBVA data) 50%
25% 21%
Barcelona Madrid 8%
92% 0%
INSIDE OUTSIDE
79%
In Madrid practically all visitors stay inside the city (92%), while in Barcelona
the percentage of tourists who prefer accommodation outside of the city
rises to 21%.
21%
8%
INSIDE OUTSIDE
26 / 48
3.4.2. Distances from the city As part of the study, we analysed the distance to the centre of the city from
centre the accommodation in which tourists stayed and we compared this between
the two cities by nationality.
Based on the use of foreign credit cards belonging to tourists, we identified

transactions in the accommodation category in which the location of the
business is logged. We observed 8,897 accommodation transactions in
Madrid and 11,423 accommodation transactions in Barcelona.
The distance to the city centre is measured in a straight line and the units
are kilometres. We consider the following to be the city centre of each of the
cities: Plaza de Cataluña in Barcelona and Puerta del Sol in Madrid.
As a general rule, visitors from countries farther away such as Japan, China
and Brazil tend to stay closer to the city centre, while visitors from nearby
countries such as Portugal, France and Belgium choose accommodation
farther from the centre. One notable exception is visitors from Singapore and
the Middle East, who stayed far from the centre in Madrid but near the centre
in Barcelona.
Country Barcelona Madrid

Table 10:
SAUDI ARABIA 2,31 5,37
Distance (km) from
ARGENTINA 5,62 3,66
accommodation to the city
BELGIUM 6,27 5,53
centre: Plaza de Cataluña and
BRAZIL 4,03 3,56
Puerta del Sol
CHINA 3,31 4,15
(BBVA data)
DENMARK 4,79 4,43
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES 2,79 5,6
UNITED STATES 4,07 3,47
FRANCE 8,02 5,85
NETHERLANDS 7,01 4,73
INDIA 3,22 4,2
ITALY 4,79 3,58
JAPAN 2,53 2,78
NORWAY 5,5 4,22
POLAND 5,33 5,2
PORTUGAL 7,48 6,44
UNITED KINGDOM 5,72 5,23
RUSSIA 4,75 3,68
SINGAPORE 2,76 6,87
SWEDEN 5,09 4,4
SWITZERLAND 5,03 4,08
27 / 48
Barcelona:
The total average distance that visitors stay from the city centre is 5.5
kilometres.
Visitors from Saudi Arabia, Japan and Singapore are those that stay closest to
the centre of Barcelona. French, Portuguese and Dutch visitors stay farthest
from the centre.
Madrid:
The total average distance that visitors stay from Madrid city centre is 4.5
kilometres.
Visitors from Japan, the United States and Brazil are those that stay closest
to the city centre. Visitors from Singapore, Portugal and France stay farthest
from the centre.
3.5. Spending
3.5.1. Cumulative average Another interesting point to analyse is tourists’ spending during their stay.
spending by card throughout This allows us to detect spending patterns by nationality in each city and
the stay estimate the hotel category they stay in based on the amount they spend on
accommodation.
Foreign credit cards belonging to tourists show us the total amount spent by
each of them during the study period. Therefore, it is the amount spent by
card, i.e. the family unit, not the individual tourist. It can also be broken
down by city visited and the visitor’s country of origin.
Barcelona Madrid
600€
Figure 12:
500€
Average overall spending by
400€
card throughout the study
300€
period by country and city
(BBVA data) 200€
161,5€
100€
Barcelona Madrid
0€
92%
E
IA
IL
FR S
ES
N E EL Y
M
NG E
PO M
DE ND
NO A
SW Y
RT N
AL
AL
A
ND
C
OR
E
IN
BI
DI
IN
AR
AN
E
PA
TH GIU
DO
AZ
SS
RW
UG
AT
AT
ED A N
ED
LA
RA
IT
IN
CH
NT
NM
JA
AP
LA
RL
RU
BR
ST
IR
IA
GE
ER
ZE
NG
EM
KI
ED
PO
UD
AR
79%
IT
SI
AB
IT
SW
SA
UN
IT
AR
UN
ED
IT
UN
The average cumulative card expenditure by each visitor in Spain during

those two weeks was €161.5 (dotted red line).
21%
8%
INSIDE OUTSIDE
28 / 48
There are significant differences by country of origin in this section with very
high amounts and very low amounts at both extremes.
The visitors who spend the most are those from Singapore, China and Japan,
in that order. Visitors from Switzerland, the highest-spending European
citizens, are also slightly above average. Visitors who spent the least money in
Spain were those from nearby countries such as Portugal and France, Nordic
countries such as Sweden and Denmark, and also a non-European country,
Argentina.
Comparison of average spending between Barcelona and Madrid

Table 11:
SAUDI ARABIA 276,20 € 293,34 €
Average spending (€) by card
ARGENTINA 98,22 € 105,08 €
during the stay broken down by
BELGIUM 121,43 € 122,19 €
nationality and city
BRAZIL 143,46 € 137,38 €
(BBVA data)
CHINA 419,26 € 459,76 €
DENMARK 112,21 € 107,00 €
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES 291,88 € 201,08 €
UNITED STATES 140,82 € 131,73 €
FRANCE 105,73 € 115,18 €
NETHERLANDS 107,41 € 117,45 €
INDIA 181,55 € 170,90 €
ITALY 122,01 € 125,50 €
JAPAN 298,39 € 299,25 €
NORWAY 139,40 € 101,30 €
POLAND 124,86 € 110,64 €
PORTUGAL 92,65 € 90,26 €
UNITED KINGDOM 116,25 € 114,60 €
RUSSIA 204,19 € 198,63 €
SINGAPORE 378,91 € 532,55 €
SWEDEN 94,64 € 92,56 €
SWITZERLAND 161,73 € 182,26 €
WEIGHTED AVERAGE SPENDING 152,68 € 174,37 €
Average spending during the stay by tourists in Madrid is 14% higher than the
average amount spent in Barcelona (€174.37 v €15.268).
There is a very significant difference in both cities between spending during the
week and spending at the weekend, with 25% higher expenditure during the
week. The fact that shops are closed on Sundays could be decisive in this.
The country ranking is similar in both cities with considerably higher

expenditure for visitors from countries in the Middle East and Far East.
29 / 48
3.5.2. Average daily spending Since the amount spent tends to build up the longer visitors stay, in this
section we have analysed the average daily spending on each card. This
allows us to determine which countries spend the most regardless of the
number of days they stay in Madrid or Barcelona.
Credit card data can be used to analyse the average spending by card and
day, broken down by nationality. This is the result of dividing total spending
by the number of days on which the card was active (the difference between
the date of the last transaction and the first one). In order to avoid distortion,
we have only taken into account cards used on more than one day.
Barcelona Madrid
250€
Figure 13:
200€
Average daily spending by card
150€
broken down by country and
city 100€
(BBVA data) 50€

58,5€/day
Barcelona Madrid 0€
A
IA
CE
IL
NM Y
K
ER AY
RT D
SW L
EN
AL
A
A R A ND
OR
E
IN
BI
DI
IN
AR
AN
PO AN
PA
IU
DO
AZ
SS
UG
AT
AT
AN
ED
RA
IT
IN
CH
NT
LG
JA
NE NOR
AP
RL
L
RU
BR
NG
92%
ST
IR
FR
PO
L
IA
GE
BE
ZE
NG
EM
DE
KI
ED
UD
TH
IT
SI
ED
AB
IT
SW
SA
UN
IT
AR
79% UN
ED
IT
UN
The average daily spending by each visitor in Spain is €58.5/day (dotted line).
21% There are significant differences by country of origin in this section with very
high amounts and very low amounts at both extremes.
8%
The visitors who spent the most come from China, Singapore, Japan and the
INSIDE OUTSIDE
Arabian Peninsula.
The visitors who spent the least money in Spain come from Nordic countries
such as Sweden and Denmark, neighbouring countries such as Portugal and
non-European countries such as Argentina.
30 / 48
Country Daily spending (€) Average stay (days) Total spending (€)
Table 12:
SAUDI ARABIA 103,45 2,67 276,20
Average daily spending in
ARGENTINA 35,98 2,73 98,22
Barcelona by card broken down
BELGIUM 54,45 2,23 121,43
by nationality
BRAZIL 49,13 2,92 143,46
(BBVA and Telefónica data)
CHINA 199,65 2,10 419,26
DENMARK 35,29 3,18 112,21
UNITED STATES 66,74 2,11 140,82
FRANCE 53,13 1,99 105,73
NETHERLANDS 42,12 2,55 107,41
INDIA 109,37 1,66 181,55
ITALY 60,70 2,01 122,01
JAPAN 143,46 2,08 298,39
NORWAY 44,11 3,16 139,40
POLAND 45,08 2,77 124,86
PORTUGAL 41,73 2,22 92,65
RUSSIA 72,92 2,80 204,19
SINGAPORE 139,31 2,72 378,91
SWEDEN 32,19 2,94 94,64
SWITZERLAND 82,94 1,95 161,73
The order of countries does not significantly change when the cities are
compared. Higher levels of spending are between €140 and €200 and the
lower range is around €35.
31 / 48
Table 13:
SAUDI ARABIA 113,70 2,58 293,34
Average daily spending by
ARGENTINA 45,89 2,29 105,08
card in Madrid broken down by
BELGIUM 63,64 1,92 122,19
nationality
BRAZIL 55,40 2,48 137,38
CHINA 204,34 2,25 459,76
DENMARK 53,77 1,99 107,00
UNITED STATES 64,57 2,04 131,73
FRANCE 62,94 1,83 115,18
NETHERLANDS 50,19 2,34 117,45
INDIA 63,30 2,70 170,90
ITALY 54,80 2,29 125,50
JAPAN 139,84 2,14 299,25
NORWAY 51,42 1,97 101,30
POLAND 45,72 2,42 110,64
PORTUGAL 42,58 2,12 90,26
RUSSIA 90,29 2,20 198,63
SINGAPORE 195,07 2,73 532,55
SWEDEN 34,67 2,67 92,56
SWITZERLAND 100,7 1,81 182,26
Although the order of countries is distributed similarly there is slightly higher

spending by tourists in Madrid. The upper range is between €140 and €205 and
the lower range is from €35 to €45.
32 / 48
3.5.3. Cumulative average Credit card analysis also shows the total spending by each of them on
spending on accommodation accommodation during the study period. This can also be broken down by city
by card during the stay and the visitor’s country of origin.
It is important to mention that average spending on accommodation alone

(€298.7, see Figure 14) is far higher than total average spending (€136.5, see
Figure 12). The same applies to average daily spending, as detailed in the
following point. This may initially seem to make no sense but the difference lies
in the number of transactions in each case. The total volume of transactions
amounts to more than 253,000, while the number of transactions on
accommodation alone is approximately 20,000. Hence, when total spending is
averaged out, it is diluted by low-volume transactions and therefore is lower
than average spending on accommodation.
Barcelona Madrid
1000€
Figure 14: 900€
Average spending by card on 800€
accommodation during the 700€
study period by country and city 600€
(Telefónica data and BBVA) 500€
400€
300€ 298,71 €
Barcelona Madrid
200€
92% 100€
0€
79%
EN
RT IL
FR L
A
A
ES
NO A
AY
K I ND
ER O M
SW M
S
AL
C
OR
E
IN
BI
DI
IN
I
AR
AN
ND
PA
IU
Z
SS
RW
UG
AT
AT
AR AN
ED
A
A
D
RA
IT
IN
NT
CH
LG
NM
JA
AP
RL
IT P OL
LA
RU
BR
NE NG
ST
IR
IA
GE
BE
ZE
NG
EM
DE
ED
PO
UD
IT
TH
SI
ED
AB
IT
SW
SA
UN
AR
UN
ED
IT
UN
21%
Average total spending on accommodation on each of the visitors’ credit cards
8%
in Spain during those two weeks was €298.71 (dotted red line).
INSIDE OUTSIDE
As one might expect, there is polarisation here too. There are two main groups
for average spending on accommodation. The group of countries from the
Middle East and India spend practically twice as much on accommodation as
the rest of countries. This could be explained by the fact that the groups or
family units who visit us are larger so the cost is higher.
Argentinians, French, Portuguese and Brazilians spend the least on

accommodation. That is in spite of the fact that 10% of tourists from these
countries stay in Madrid or Barcelona for more than 6 days.
33 / 48
Comparison of average spending on accommodation between Barcelona

and Madrid
The ranking of spending by countries is different in Madrid and Barcelona; in

addition, the absolute value of spending in Barcelona is considerably lower
than in Madrid (around 20%). Part of this additional expenditure could be due
to the visitors staying slightly longer in Barcelona than in Madrid, 2.28 days
versus 2.15 days. One should also consider that hotels in Barcelona could be
more expensive than those in Madrid.

Table 14:
SAUDI ARABIA 909,60 794,61
Average spending (€) on
ARGENTINA 166,58 174,66
accommodation by card
BELGIUM 286,88 228,31
throughout the study period
BRAZIL 250,54 207,96
broken down by nationality and
CHINA 394,41 372,82
city
DENMARK 327,84 340,94
(BBVA data)
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES 561,17 460,18
UNITED STATES 333,38 302,30
FRANCE 182,50 175,56
NETHERLANDS 331,92 236,99
INDIA 600,43 474,39
ITALY 305,22 224,17
JAPAN 279,85 323,41
NORWAY 304,26 305,96
POLAND 330,09 234,90
PORTUGAL 180,90 179,84
UNITED KINGDOM 300,88 263,56
RUSSIA 343,47 263,13
SINGAPORE 429,78 252,86
SWEDEN 219,06 294,53
SWITZERLAND 362,82 367,87
AVERAGE SPENDING ON ACCOMMODATION 311,43 280,16
34 / 48
3.5.4. Average daily spending If one divides total spending on accommodation by visitors from each country
on accommodation by the average stay, that gives the average daily spending on accommodation
by country. This figure is very useful in determining visitors’ hotel category
preferences for each country.
Average daily spending by card on accommodation by country and city

(price per night)
Barcelona Madrid
400€
Figure 15:
350€
Average daily spending by card
300€
on accommodation by country
and city 250€
(Telefónica data and BBVA) 200€
150€
Barcelona Madrid 129€
100€
92%
50€
79%
0€
A
ES
UN DE A N
NG K
NO M
NG AY
IA
PO S
FR D
SW E
EN
RT L
GE AL
A
AL
P O A ZI
ND
C
OR
E
BI
DI
IN
IN
R
AN
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IU
DO
SS
SI RW
A R UG
AT
AT
AN
ED
P
ED M A
LA
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IT
IN
CH
NT
LG
JA
AP
LA
RL
RU
BR
ST
IR
N
IA
BE
ER
ZE
EM
KI
ED
UD
TH
IT
AB
IT
SW
SA
NE
UN
IT
AR
ED
IT
UN
21%
8%
Average daily spending on accommodation (price per night) by each visitor in
Spain during those two weeks is €129 (dotted red line).
INSIDE OUTSIDE
Daily spending by nationalities follows a similar pattern to cumulative

spending. On the one hand, tourists from the Arabian Peninsula and India
spend the most on accommodation per day. On the other hand, Argentinians,
Portuguese and Brazilians spend the least on accommodation.
As far as the difference between cities is concerned, visitors from Denmark,

Norway and Sweden respectively spend an average of 66%, 61% and 48%
more in Madrid than in Barcelona. Tourists from India and Singapore spend
more in Barcelona: 106% and 71% more, respectively.
35 / 48
Table 15:
SAUDI ARABIA 340,67 2,67 909,60
Average daily spending on
ARGENTINA 61,02 2,73 166,58
accommodation in Barcelona
BELGIUM 128,65 2,23 286,88
by card broken down by
BRAZIL 85,80 2,92 250,54
nationality
CHINA 187,81 2,10 394,41
DENMARK 103,09 3,18 327,84
UNITED STATES 158,00 2,11 333,38
FRANCE 91,71 1,99 182,50
NETHERLANDS 130,16 2,55 331,92
INDIA 361,70 1,66 600,43
ITALY 151,85 2,01 305,22
JAPAN 134,54 2,08 279,85
NORWAY 96,28 3,16 304,26
POLAND 119,17 2,77 330,09
PORTUGAL 81,49 2,22 180,90
UNITED KINGDOM 138,65 2,17 300,88
RUSSIA 122,67 2,80 343,47
SINGAPORE 158,01 2,72 429,78
SWEDEN 74,51 2,94 219,06
SWITZERLAND 186,06 1,95 362,82
Table 16:
SAUDI ARABIA 307,99 2,58 794,61
Average daily spending on
ARGENTINA 76,27 2,29 174,66
accommodation in Madrid
BELGIUM 118,91 1,92 228,31
broken down by nationality
BRAZIL 83,85 2,48 207,96
CHINA 165,7 2,25 372,82
DENMARK 171,33 1,99 340,94
UNITED STATES 148,19 2,04 302,30
FRANCE 95,93 1,83 175,56
NETHERLANDS 101,28 2,34 236,99
INDIA 175,70 2,70 474,39
ITALY 97,89 2,29 224,17
JAPAN 151,13 2,14 323,41
NORWAY 155,31 1,97 305,96
POLAND 97,07 2,42 234,90
PORTUGAL 84,83 2,12 179,84
UNITED KINGDOM 127,94 2,06 263,56
RUSSIA 119,60 2,20 263,13
SINGAPORE 92,62 2,73 252,86
SWEDEN 110,31 2,67 294,53
SWITZERLAND 203,24 1,81 367,87
36 / 48
4. Specific recommendations for hotels
4. Specific
recommenda-
tions for
hotels
4.1. Introduction We conclude the study with a series of tactical and strategic
recommendations for hotel managers, divided into accommodation
category and specific management action.
• Winning customers: countries of origin on which to focus marketing work,

recommendations concerning channels and communication languages in
countries of origin and at the destination.
• Location/expansion: areas of interest by nationality
• Product configuration: the ideal package length, information about

complementary services demanded by different nationalities.
Obviously, any decision-making should be based on more in-depth analysis

covering a longer timeframe, which would make it possible to show seasonal
and annual variations. Recommendations are included as a sample of the
kind of applications that using these data sources could have in a new
business intelligence model in the industry.
4.2. Spending-based hotel We used the average daily spending by nationality to select the hotel
category methodology category based on these data in the above tables. In this case, we propose
the following hotel categories based on an average daily rate (ADR):
• 5-star hotel: ADR more than €140

• 4-star hotel: ADR between €100 and €140
• 3-star hotel: ADR less than €100
This categorisation allows us to link hotel categories with each country. For
example, Belgians’ average spending in Barcelona is €128.65, which would
mean a 4-star hotel, while Swiss average spending of €203.24 in Madrid would
mean a 5-star hotel.
So, based on the above hotel categorisation, using average spending or ADR
to do so, the following can be concluded:
Visitors from non-European countries and non-Latin American countries

mostly stay in 5-star hotels. Apart from Switzerland, which is also in the
5-star list.
37 / 48
Visitors from European countries mainly stay in 4-star hotels, except for
French and Portuguese visitors who stay in lower category hotels.
Brazil and Argentina are the only non-European countries that stay in 3-star
or lower accommodation.
Sweden is a surprise in that unlike the rest of Nordic countries they also stay
in 3-star accommodation together with the French and Portuguese.
4.3. Overall The main visitor countries in terms of tourist numbers are as follows:
recommendations
• Barcelona province: France, Italy, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands
• Madrid province: France, Italy, the United Kingdom and Portugal
For these countries it is considered necessary to carry out action to win

customers irrespective of the parameters analysed in the study.
Both French and Portuguese have a lower level of spending than other
countries. It is recommended to carry out action to win customers through
intermediaries or, in any case, in a very segmented manner to ensure
profitability, as they have greater capillarity and expenditure is 100% variable
for hotels.
There is great potential for growth in BRIC countries (Brazil, India, Russia
and China). Madrid seems to have the greatest potential for Brazilians and
Chinese, while Barcelona has the greatest potential for Russians. India is still
a tiny market for both cities. It is worth highlighting the purchasing power of
visitors from China, which are clearly luxury hotel customers.
There are very large differences in spending on accommodation for some

countries. Swedes and Japanese spend much more on accommodation in
Madrid than in Barcelona, while tourists from the Arabian Peninsula, India
and Italy spend much more in Barcelona.
38 / 48
4.4. Specific action for

hotels in Barcelona
4.4.1. 5-star hotels in Action to win customers

Barcelona (total daily price of
more than €140) • SEM / SEO campaigns:
• All hotels: Italy, Switzerland, the United States, China, Arab
Emirates, India, Saudi Arabia and Singapore. Baidu campaign for
China.
• Central hotels only: Switzerland, China, India.
• Luxury websites or intermediaries specifically for Switzerland and the

United States and using intermediaries operating in all of the aforementioned
countries
Languages the website should be translated into: Spanish, English, German,

French, Italian.
Location
Tourists from the Arabian Peninsula and India look for a central location
in Ciutat Vella and those from the United States and Singapore also stay in
central locations but in Eixample. Location is not a determining factor for
Chinese, Italians and Swiss.
Offers
The average stay for visitors in these hotels is 2 to 3 days. Offers should be
made for that length of stay with long-stay discounts from the fourth night.
Implications for hotel services
There must be hotel staff who speak English, German, Italian, Dutch, French,
Mandarin and Arabic.
Meals must be adapted and properly labelled for tourists of these

nationalities.
There is an opportunity to sell additional products and services to

visitors from China whose average daily spending is very high and who
consume luxury products. Offering them related services (dinners in luxury
restaurants, reaching agreements with exclusive jewellers, etc.) could
constitute a new source of income.
39 / 48

Barcelona (total daily price
between €100 and €140) • SEM / SEO campaigns:
• Spain, France, Italy, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands,
Denmark, Russia, Poland and Japan.
• Due to the low volume of spending by French people during their
stay, for France we recommend daily budget control of campaigns so
that the ROI is positive.
• Yandex and Google campaign for Russia.
• Luxury websites or intermediaries specifically for Nordic countries as well

as using intermediaries operating in all of the aforementioned countries.

French, Russian, Italian, Dutch and Japanese.
Location
Customers from these countries are mainly spread among hotels in Ciutat
Vella, Eixample, Sant Martí and the outskirts. Japanese are an exception; half
of them stay in Eixample.
Offers
2- to 3-day offers should be made for all countries.
Staff in these hotels must be able to speak Spanish, English, French, Russian,
German and Japanese.
There is an opportunity for the hotel to sell additional products or services

to Russian visitors and also to Japanese visitors who spend considerable
amounts in fashion shops in Barcelona. Offering them related services
(personal shoppers, organised trips to shops, etc.) could constitute a new
source of income.

Barcelona (total daily price
less than €100) • SEM / SEO campaigns:
• Spain, France, Sweden, Norway, Portugal, Brazil and Argentina.
• Due to the low volume of spending by French people during their
stay, for France we recommend daily budget control of campaigns so
that the ROI is positive.
40 / 48
• Luxury websites or intermediaries specifically for Nordic countries as well

as using intermediaries operating in all of the aforementioned countries.
Since price is a decisive aspect, it is important to be present in all of the mass-
market intermediaries used to search for offers and affordable prices

French and Portuguese.
Location
Tourists do not generally stay in central hotels (due to the price).
Offers
2- to 3-day offers should be made for all countries. Offers for the French
should be more like 2 days and 3 days for Norwegians.
Staff in these hotels should speak Spanish, English, French and Portuguese.
Spending on additional services by these customers is not particularly high

so no specific action should be taken.
4.5. Specific action for

hotels in Madrid
4.5.1. 5-star hotels in Madrid Action to win customers

(total daily price of more than
€140) • SEM / SEO campaigns:
• All hotels: United States, Switzerland, China, Japan, Norway,
Denmark, India, Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. Baidu campaign for
China.
• Luxury websites or intermediaries specifically for Switzerland, the United

States and Nordic countries, as well as using intermediaries operating in all of
the aforementioned countries.
Languages the website should be translated into: Spanish, English, French

and Japanese.
41 / 48
Location
Most tourists in Madrid always stay in central hotels, especially those from
the Americas. A central hotel is not a determining factor in choosing a hotel
for citizens of the Arab Emirates and India.
Offers
The average stay by visitors in these hotels is 2 to 3 days; the Swiss stay the
shortest length of time and Indians have the longest average stay in Madrid.
Offers should be for a two-day stay with long-stay discounts from the third
night.
There must be hotel staff who speak English, French, Japanese and Arabic.

nationalities.
There is an opportunity to sell additional services to visitors from China,

Japan and the Arabian Peninsula whose average daily spending is very high
and who consume luxury products. Offering them related services (dinners in
luxury restaurants, reaching agreements with exclusive jewellers, etc.) could
constitute a new source of income.

(total daily price between
€100 and €140) • SEM / SEO campaigns:
All hotels: United Kingdom, Netherlands, Belgium, Russia, Sweden and
Russia.
• Nordic luxury websites or intermediaries as well as using intermediaries

operating in all of the aforementioned countries.

French, Dutch and Russian.
Location
Tourists in Madrid almost always stay in central hotels, especially Russians.
Offers
The average stay for visitors in these hotels is 2 days. Offers should be for a
two-day stay with long-stay discounts from the third night.
42 / 48
There must be hotel staff who speak English, French, German, Dutch and
Russian.

nationalities.
There is an opportunity to sell additional products or services to visitors from

Russia whose average daily spending is very high and who consume luxury
products. Offering them related services (dinners in luxury restaurants,
reaching agreements with exclusive jewellers, etc.) could constitute a new
source of income.

(total daily price less than
€100) • SEM / SEO campaigns:
• Spain, France (cost control), Italy, Portugal, Poland, Brazil,
Argentina and Singapore.
• Since price is a decisive aspect, it is important to be present in all of the

mass-market intermediaries used to search for offers and affordable prices. It
is especially recommended to give particular emphasis to intermediaries for
France, Portugal and Brazil.

French, Portuguese and Italian.
Location
Tourists have a preference for the Centro area in the city centre in Madrid.
Offers
2-day offers should be made for all countries with the possibility of 3 days for
tourists from Singapore.
Staff in these hotels must speak Spanish, English, French, Italian and
Portuguese.
Spending on additional services by these customers is not particularly high

so no specific action should be taken.
43 / 48
5. Methodological note
5. Methodolog-
ical note
5.1. Description of the The datasets used in the study are described below, stating what they are
datasets like, how they retained and their potential limitations. In both cases, the
datasets are limited to the geographical scope of the provinces of Madrid
and Barcelona and the period between 7 and 21 October 2012, both
inclusive.
5.1.1. BBVA dataset The dataset is based on the data gathered by BBVA’s electronic payment
systems: transactions carried out by users of credit or debit cards issued
by foreign card issuers (foreign customers) in shops that use BBVA POS
terminals.
In order to distinguish foreign tourists from expatriates living in Spain we only

included foreign cards in the dataset that performed transactions between
7 and 21 October 2012 and that remained in the country for a period of less
than 15 days throughout 2012.
The POS terminals covered by this report are those located in the provinces
of Madrid and Barcelona.
The study’s conclusions are directly based on the data gathered by BBVA’s
electronic payment systems. We have not applied coefficients to deduce all of
the payments made by other means.
These data are completely anonymous. We have worked with data

aggregated in time and space after duly eliminating information about
individuals and legal persons through irreversible processes to guarantee
users’ privacy pursuant to the Organic Law on Personal Data protection (Ley
Orgánica de Protección de Datos Personales 15/1999) and its regulations (RD
1720/2007). Information from card transactions in shops and cash machines
in the city was used for statistical purposes only. Under no circumstances can
this analysis be used to trace individual people’s behaviour.
Field Description
Table 17:
AMOUNT Amount of the transaction in €
Fields and descriptions of
DATE Date and time the payment was made
BBVA’s dataset
COUNTRY Country of the credit or debit card issuer
The card’s ID.

CARD ID This is never the same as the card’s real number
ID of the Point of Sale terminal in

POS terminal ID the shop where the purchase is made
CATEGORY The shop’s commercial category

LATITUDE The shop’s latitude
LONGITUDE The shop’s longitude
44 / 48
One aspect to take into account is that credit or debit card payments are only
part of the total payments in the shop since approximately 50% of spending
in shops is carried out using cash. This percentage fluctuates depending on
the shop’s category and its surrounding area but also cultural biases inherent
to the user’s nationality. None of the results presented in this report is an
extrapolation used to deduce total spending by foreign tourists. In all cases,
the figures shown are those gathered by BBVA’s electronic payment systems
and they should not be taken as absolute figures for spending through any
means of payment.
5.1.2. Telefónica’s dataset The dataset used in this study comes from records of certain network events
generated by telephones with a SIM card issued by operators outside of
Spain, which are roaming on Telefónica Móviles España’s network. Examples
of these kinds of events include turning on the telephone, sending an SMS,
making a call or changing coverage area. When one of these events takes
place, it is logged together with the base station the telephone is connected
to and the time it took place. Since the exact location of each base station is
known, that gives an approximate idea of where the telephone is at that time.
Logs basically have the following format:
Table 18: Field Description

DATE Date and time the event took place
Fields and descriptions of
COUNTRY Country of the operator that issued the telephone’s SIM card
Telefónica’s dataset
The telephone’s ID.
TELEPHONE ID Under no circumstances is it the telephone’s real number
The ID of the base station the telephone was

CELL ID connected to when the event took place
LATITUDE Latitude of the base station’s position

LONGITUDE Longitude of the base station’s position
To comply with data protection regulations and ensure privacy, these logs
are anonymous since the real telephone number is replaced with a unique
identifier in a way that makes it impossible to carry out the process in reverse
(you cannot obtain the telephone number from the identifier). However,
furthermore, the logs are not used individually: they are always aggregated
in order to identify general behaviour (normally by nationality) and never
individually. As if that were not enough, the identity of the owners of roaming
telephones (those used in this study) is information that Telefónica Móviles
España never possesses as they are not its own subscribers. In view of all this,
it is totally impossible to individually identify the owners of those telephones.
45 / 48
As with all datasets, there are certain limitations of which one needs to be
aware. The telephone’s location is not totally precise as what we have is
actually the base station’s location. That is not too problematic in urban
environments as the density of base stations there is high enough to provide
reasonable precision; but it can be in rural areas. There may be another
limitation when extrapolating total data from the information obtained.
One specific example is that not all telephones used by Russian tourists who
visit Spain connect to Telefónica’s network, which means that if one wants
to know the total number of Russian telephones then some extrapolation
is necessary that could introduce certain errors. In this report all of the
data presented are not extrapolated, so they cannot be taken as absolute.
However, we think that nevertheless they provide a pretty clear idea of the
situation.
5.2. Privacy This report has been drawn up based on anonymised, aggregate data that
have then been extrapolated through a statistical process ensuring they
are completely disassociated pursuant to Spanish law (LOPD 15/1999 and its
developing regulations, RD 1720/2007, and Ley General de Telecomunicaciones
32/2003). This completely prevents the identification of any individual based
on the data used and so guarantees users’ privacy.
The data and recommendations described are based on the data gathered as
described in 5.1.1 and 5.1.2. Coefficients have not been used to extrapolate
all of the indicators in this report.
Data was processed subject to a responsible code of conduct by all parties

and processing was carried out solely in order to encourage progress in
transforming society and tourism.

46 / 48
6. ANNEX
6. Annex
6.1. List of tables
Table 1: Unique telephones registered (Telefónica data) 13
Table 2: Average stay (Telefónica data) 15
Table 3: Average stays in Barcelona depending on the day on which the visits 16
start and the total (Telefónica data)
Table 4: Average stays in Madrid depending on the day on which the visits start 17
and the total (Telefónica data)
Table 5: Percentage distribution of the number of telephones in Barcelona 19

according to four stay length ranges (Telefónica data)
Table 6: Percentage distribution of the number of telephones in Madrid 20

according to four stay length ranges (Telefónica data)
Table 7: Travel between cities (B-Barcelona, M-Madrid) expressed in 21

percentages. For example, B shows the telephone does not leave
Barcelona and B-M-B shows the telephone moved to Madrid and back to
Barcelona (Telefónica data)
Table 8: Distribution of accommodation by district in Barcelona (BBVA data) 23
Table 9: Distribution of accommodation by district in Madrid (BBVA data) 25
Table 10: Distance (km) from accommodation to the city centre: Plaza de 27
Cataluña and Puerta del Sol (BBVA data)
Table 11: Average spending (€) by card during the stay broken down by nationality 29
and city (BBVA data)
Table 12: Average daily spending in Barcelona by card broken down by nationality 31
Table 13: Average daily spending by card in Madrid broken down by nationality 32
Table 14: Average spending (€) on accommodation by card throughout the study 34
period broken down by nationality and city (BBVA data)
Table 15: Average daily spending on accommodation in Barcelona by card broken 36

down by nationality (BBVA and Telefónica data)
Table 16: Average daily spending on accommodation in Madrid broken down by 36

nationality (BBVA and Telefónica data)
Table 17: Fields and descriptions of BBVA’s dataset 44
Table 18: Fields and descriptions of Telefónica’s dataset 45
47 / 48
6. ANNEX
6.2. List of figures
Figure 1: Distribution of visitors by country (Telefónica data) 14
Figure 2: Distribution of visitors between Barcelona and Madrid (Telefónica data) 14
Figure 3: City preference, Barcelona over Madrid (Telefónica data) 14
Figure 4: City preference, Madrid over Barcelona (Telefónica data) 14
Figure 5: Average stay in days in Barcelona and Madrid (Telefónica data) 18
Figure 6: Overall distribution of length of stay (Telefónica data) 18
Figure 7: Distribution by days spent in Barcelona (Telefónica data) 19
Figure 8: Distribution by days spent in Madrid (Telefónica data) 20
Figure 9: Percentage of overnight stays by district in Barcelona (BBVA data) 24
Figure 10: Percentage of overnight stays by district in Madrid (BBVA data) 26
Figure 11: Percentage of overnight stays inside and outside of the city (BBVA data) 26
Figure 12: Average overall spending by card throughout the study period by 28
country and city (BBVA data)
Figure 13: Average daily spending by card broken down by country and city (BBVA 30
data)
Figure 14: Average spending by card on accommodation during the study period 33
by country and city (Telefónica data and BBVA)
Figure 15: Average daily spending by card on accommodation by country and city 35
(Telefónica data and BBVA)
48 / 48

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Big Data and Tourism New Indicators For Tourism Management - Daniel Patinìƒo PDF

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CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

FOR THE HOTEL INDUSTRY

BIG DATA AND

Design and layout:

Barcelona, May 2014

Analysis of the vast amount of data produced by digital activity opens up a

In contrast, the innovative approach achieved through this study is to

This incorporates a type of information that increases knowledge of the

• Visitors’ main country of origin

Visitors’ countries of origin

In terms of preference between the two cities, Argentinians, Brazilians and

In Barcelona, visitors from Nordic countries (Denmark, Norway and Sweden)

Travel between Madrid and Barcelona:

Visitors to Barcelona are mainly concentrated in 3 areas of the city (Ciutat

Visitors from non-European countries and non-Latin American countries

As far as the difference between cities is concerned, visitors from Denmark,

It is important to highlight that average spending on accommodation is higher

Spending on accommodation by tourists in Barcelona is notably higher

Main recommendations for the hotel industry:

• Winning more customers and pinpointing the countries on which it is

• Ensuring you provide an attractive product suited to customers’ true needs

Obviously, any decision in this area should be based on more in-depth

Finally, it is worth highlighting the purchasing power of visitors from China,

In order to adapt to tourists’ real needs, depending on their nationality, a

It is relevant to know cumulative spending by nationality and which tourists

Finally, it is recommended to adapt offers to stays of 2 or 3 nights depending

It is also relevant to know cumulative spending by nationality and which

• Visitors: how many come and where do they come from

First of all, studies could be classified by the data gathering methodology:

• Surveys: available reports include Tourist Border Movements (FRONTUR),

Studies could also be classified by source gathering data or by the organisation

• INE: Spanish Statistics Institute

In some cases, such as FRONTUR, they estimate results from administrative

• Representativeness: adding all of the information sources together, it can be

• Telefónica data: approximately one third of telephones whose SIM comes

That increases the sample base on which conventional research tends to be

• Information detail and segmentation capacity: the degree of space/time

• New information flows: a type of information that increases knowledge

• Possibility of new business opportunities: the results of this analysis can

This list of 21 countries used throughout the report is not a continuous

Table 1: Total Telephones % Telephones %

SAUDI ARABIA 2.900 1.698 58,6% 1.202 41,4%

3.2. Length of stay

Table 2: Country Average Total Stay

3.2.2. Average stay in

Average stay Average stay

3.2.3. Average stay in Madrid

Average stay Average stay

3.2.4. Comparison between

Barcelona and Madrid

In the following points we will analyse the distribution by countries within

Country < 1 day 1 -3 days 3 - 6 days > 6 days

The countries with greatest representation in the category of stays lasting

> 6 days 30%

Country < 1 day 1 -3 days 3 - 6 days > 6 days

> 6 days 30%

As far as travel between cities is concerned, 1.3% of tourists who arrive at

As far as travel from Madrid to Barcelona is concerned, Japanese, Chinese

Accommodation preferences by areas in Barcelona

UNITED STATES 26% 39% 20% 3% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 10%

As far as Japanese are concerned, almost half of them stay in Eixample,

Accommodation preferences by areas in Madrid

CHINA 40% 10% 12% 10% 2% 8% 5% 3% 3% 1% 0% 4% 0% 0% 0% 3%