Spain’s recreational boating sector is enjoying a strong summer, with new boat registrations up more than 11% and marine tourism generating an annual economic impact of €6.2 billion. The growth follows a more challenging 2025 and is being accompanied by increased demand for skipper qualifications as more people take to the water for their holidays.
According to the Spanish National Association of Marine Industry Companies (ANEN), 3,105 new recreational craft were registered during the first part of 2026. This represents an 11.2% increase on the same period last year.
The improvement follows 4,992 new vessel registrations during 2025, when the market was down 0.9% compared with 2024.
Marine Tourism Generates €6.2 Billion
Boating is also becoming an increasingly important part of Spain’s tourism economy.
More than 5.7 million boating-related trips were made in Spain during 2025, generating an economic impact of €6.2 billion, according to the Sports Statistics Yearbook published by the Ministry of Education, Vocational Training and Sports. That represented a 15% increase on 2024.
Domestic travellers accounted for almost 80% of both trips and expenditure, but international visitors provided the strongest growth.
Boating trips by overseas tourists increased by 45% to more than one million journeys along the Spanish coast. These generated more than €1.6 billion in economic activity.
More Spaniards Qualify as Skippers
The figures also point to growing participation in recreational boating among Spaniards. More than 57,000 skipper licences and qualifications were issued during 2025 as people sought the qualifications required to take command of recreational vessels.
Spain has more than 7,900km of coastline and a network of 375 marinas providing more than 134,700 berths.
Luis Conde, president of the Barcelona International Boat Show, said the figures underlined the industry's potential for further growth.
“Boating is a major driver of economic activity in Spain, a country that has all the ingredients needed to become a global benchmark for the industry,” he said. “Now is the time to maximise its opportunities, encourage new experiences, attract new audiences and move towards a more sustainable boating sector that protects the sea on which it depends.”
Barcelona Boat Show Targets Growing Market
The Barcelona International Boat Show will seek to capitalise on the sector's growth when it returns from 14-18 October. Organised by Fira de Barcelona in collaboration with ANEN, the show is expected to feature more than 200 exhibitors representing leading marine brands.
Alongside new boats and marine equipment, the 2026 event will include areas dedicated to boating destinations and marinas around Spain, as well as leisure and watersports experiences.
