2018 total
10.2 million cruise passengers
First port · 2018
3.04 million cruise passengers
Series high, 2012–2025
14.1 million cruise passengers
Cruise calls
4,361 calls
The 2018 balance
Spanish ports received 10.2 million cruise passengers in 2018, 9.6% more than in 2017 (888,456 cruise passengers more). This is the year-end balance according to Puertos del Estado’s monthly statistics, with December data for the 28 port authorities.
The high point of the 2012–2025 series is 2025, with 14.1 million cruise passengers: 2018 was 27.9% below it and ranks 5th of the 14 years with data. At the end of 2018 it was the highest figure in the series, which starts in 2012; it was later exceeded in 2019, 2023, 2024 and 2025.
In the 2018 ranking, the ports moving up on 2017 are Bahía de Cádiz (from 7th to 6th); those moving down are Valencia (from 6th to 7th). The top three positions are unchanged.
Cruise calls: 4,361 calls in 2018, 2.9% more than in 2017. Baleares ranks first on this measure, with 860 calls.
Barcelona ranks first among port authorities with 3.04 million cruise passengers in 2018 (12.2% more than in 2017). It is followed by Baleares (2.43 million) and Las Palmas (1.33 million). Together, the three account for 66.9% of the total.
The largest increases were recorded by Baleares (+14.1%), Vigo (+13.0%) and Barcelona (+12.2%); the steepest falls by Cartagena (−2.9%), A Coruña (−2.8%) and Málaga (−0.4%). The comparison is limited to port authorities that account for at least 1% of the total, so that an extreme swing at a small player does not distort the picture.
The rest of the top ten are Santa Cruz de Tenerife (4th, 1.02 million, +5.8%), Málaga (5th, 507,421 cruise passengers, −0.4%), Bahía de Cádiz (6th, 424,900 cruise passengers, +9.8%), Valencia (7th, 421,518 cruise passengers, +2.2%), Cartagena (8th, 229,313 cruise passengers, −2.9%), A Coruña (9th, 178,965 cruise passengers, −2.8%) and Vigo (10th, 158,449 cruise passengers, +13.0%).
At the bottom of the table are Vilagarcía (1,158 cruise passengers), Castellón (568 cruise passengers) and Melilla (368 cruise passengers), out of a total of 28 port authorities with data.
The distribution is highly concentrated: the top five account for 81.9% of the total and 5 port authorities are enough to reach 80%, while the other 18 port authorities further down share the remaining 4.2%. 15 of the 27 port authorities with a comparison grew compared with 2017, 11 of them by double digits, and 12 fell.
Of the 12 months of 2018 with data, 10 are above the same month of 2017 and 2 below; over the last three months (October, November, December) the figure is down 0.6% on the same months of 2017; the largest year-on-year difference was in April (up 33.6%); the highest point in the series was October, at 1.32 M, and the lowest February, at 497,798.
Between 2012 and 2018 the figure went from 7.6 M to 10.2 M, an increase of 33.9% over 6 years (+5.0% a year on average); the last year is the high point of the series and the low was 2012 (7.6 M).
Top 10 · Ranking of port authorities · 2018
Month by month · 2018 vs 2017
Annual series, 2012–2018
Full table · 28 port authorities · 2018
| # | Port authorities | 2018 | Change on 2017 | 2017 | Share | Profile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Barcelona | 3.04 M | +12.2% | 2.71 M | 29.9% | Port |
| 2 | Baleares | 2.43 M | +14.1% | 2.13 M | 23.9% | Port |
| 3 | Las Palmas | 1.33 M | +7.2% | 1.24 M | 13.1% | Port |
| 4 | Santa Cruz de Tenerife | 1.02 M | +5.8% | 964,336 | 10.0% | Port |
| 5 | Málaga | 507,421 | −0.4% | 509,644 | 5.0% | Port |
| 6 | Bahía de Cádiz | 424,900 | +9.8% | 387,109 | 4.2% | Port |
| 7 | Valencia | 421,518 | +2.2% | 412,328 | 4.1% | Port |
| 8 | Cartagena | 229,313 | −2.9% | 236,279 | 2.3% | Port |
| 9 | A Coruña | 178,965 | −2.8% | 184,069 | 1.8% | Port |
| 10 | Vigo | 158,449 | +13.0% | 140,188 | 1.6% | Port |
| 11 | Alicante | 100,752 | +16.5% | 86,482 | 1.0% | Port |
| 12 | Tarragona | 98,141 | +91.0% | 51,394 | 1.0% | Port |
| 13 | Bilbao | 84,157 | −0.1% | 84,209 | 0.8% | Port |
| 14 | Almería | 29,384 | +13.1% | 25,975 | 0.3% | Port |
| 15 | Gijón | 28,771 | +31.9% | 21,813 | 0.3% | Port |
| 16 | Ferrol-San Cibrao | 17,534 | −14.0% | 20,379 | 0.2% | Port |
| 17 | Ceuta | 15,861 | −6.9% | 17,045 | 0.2% | Port |
| 18 | Sevilla | 15,813 | −33.9% | 23,916 | 0.2% | Port |
| 19 | Santander | 12,307 | −16.1% | 14,663 | 0.1% | Port |
| 20 | Huelva | 11,533 | +81.4% | 6,359 | 0.1% | Port |
| 21 | Motril | 5,313 | +32.7% | 4,005 | 0.1% | Port |
| 22 | Avilés | 1,986 | −20.9% | 2,512 | 0.0% | Port |
| 23 | Pasaia | 1,371 | +69.5% | 809 | 0.0% | Port |
| 24 | Vilagarcía | 1,158 | −27.4% | 1,596 | 0.0% | Port |
| 25 | Castellón | 568 | +38.2% | 411 | 0.0% | Port |
| 26 | Melilla | 368 | — | — | 0.0% | Port |
| 27 | Bahía de Algeciras | 0 | −100.0% | — | 0.0% | Port |
| 28 | Marín y Ría de Pontevedra | 0 | −100.0% | — | 0.0% | Port |
What this indicator measures
Puertos del Estado counts each cruise passenger at every port where they embark, disembark or are in transit, so the same passenger can be counted at several ports on an itinerary. Calls are the arrivals of cruise ships. Passengers per call indicate the average size of the ships each port receives.
Frequently asked questions
Which was Spain’s first port by cruise passenger traffic in 2018?
Barcelona, with 3.04 million cruise passengers in 2018, 29.9% of the total.
What was the cruise passenger traffic figure for Spanish ports in 2018?
10.2 million cruise passengers in 2018, 9.6% more than in 2017.
Was 2018 a record year?
At the time, yes: at the end of 2018, 10.2 million cruise passengers was the highest annual figure in the series, which starts in 2012. It was later exceeded in 2019, 2023, 2024 and 2025; the high point of the 2012–2025 series is 2025, with 14.1 million cruise passengers.
Source
Puertos del Estado. To explore the data in detail, use PortStats · cruise passengers by port, annual series or see the original source.