Volcanic ash cloud causes 13% fall in April tourism

Spanish tourism figures plummeted by 13.3% in April due to problems caused by the cloud of volcanic ash, that closed European airspace for almost a week and disrupted thousands of flights.

These figures, when compared to the same month last year, can be "largely attributed" to the cloud of ash coming from the volcano in Iceland, after tourist figures had seen a 3.2% rise in March, the largest increase for almost two years, and it was hoped that this was a sign of a much-needed prosperous spring and summer.

However, the numbers of foreign tourists arriving during April dropped by some 3.9 million, due mainly to the huge number of flights cancelled, most of which were on the routes from Northern Europe, where the majority of Spain's tourists come from.