Alicante vs Granada
Granada leads Alicante by 1 points on the CIRA Index, 58 to 57. Alicante grades better on 8 measures, Granada on 7; the same 35 measures from public sources for both.
Scores by each organisation's criteria
- CIRA Index: Alicante 57, Granada 58
- OECD: Alicante 59, Granada 58
- UN Tourism: Alicante 57, Granada 57
- UNDRR: Alicante 60, Granada 57
Theme by theme
- Demand and seasonality: Alicante 70, Granada 63
- Economy and jobs: Alicante 75, Granada 67
- Climate and hazards: Alicante 45, Granada 50
- Water and environment: Alicante 42, Granada 50
- Community and housing: Alicante 50, Granada 69
- Access and continuity: Alicante 66, Granada 58
Where Alicante is stronger
- Average length of stay: 2.6 nights per visitor (Turisme Comunitat Valenciana / INE, 'Perfil del turista alojado en oferta reglada en la Comunitat Valenciana. Resultados año 2023', 2023). Between 2.2 and 2.8: grade 2/4.
- Hotel bed or room occupancy: 79 % average annual occupancy (Ayuntamiento de Alicante / Patronato Municipal de Turismo Alicante City&Beach and APHA, 2025). At or above 75: grade 4/4.
- Unemployment rate: 11.4 % of the labour force (region figure) (Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE), Encuesta de Población Activa (EPA), Q2 2026). Between 8 and 12: grade 2/4.
- Extreme heat days: 2.8 days a year at or above 35°C (last 5 full years) (ERA5 reanalysis via Open-Meteo, 2021–2025). At or below 5: grade 4/4.
- Access redundancy: 4 independent ways in: international airport, intercity rail, port, motorway (Alicante Turismo - ALICANTE City & Beach, 'How to Get to Alicante', 2026). At or above 4: grade 4/4.
- Air traffic recovery: 134.5 % of the same 12 months of 2019, airport passengers (Eurostat avia_paoa, 2025-04–2026-03). At or above 110: grade 4/4.
- Largest airline group share: 41.8 % of airport passengers carried by the largest airline group (Aena, detailed traffic statistics (passengers by airline, route and country), Sep 2025 – Aug 2026). Between 40 and 55: grade 1/4.
- Tourism crisis and recovery plan: A written destination crisis plan (Patronato de Turismo Alicante City&Beach, 'Plan Estratégico Alicante como Destino Turístico Sostenible 2023-2027', 2023–2027). Grade 2/4.
Where Granada is stronger
- Domestic share of nights: 52.4 % of nights by residents of the same country (region figure) (Diputación Provincial de Granada / Patronato Provincial de Turismo (based on INE - Encuesta de Ocupación Hotelera), 2024). At or above 45: grade 4/4.
- Largest foreign market: 15.3 % of international arrivals or nights (INE, foreign tourists by municipality and country of residence (mobile-phone positioning, table 52048), 2025). Between 15 and 20: grade 3/4.
- Tropical nights: 58.2 nights a year with a minimum at or above 20°C (last 5 full years) (ERA5 reanalysis via Open-Meteo, 2021–2025). Between 30 and 60: grade 2/4.
- Flood hazard: low (region figure) (World Bank GFDRR ThinkHazard, current (retrieved 2026)). Grade 3/4.
- Municipal waste per resident: 526.1 kg per resident per year (Ayuntamiento de Granada, Medio Ambiente - Gestión de Residuos, 2024). Between 450 and 550: grade 2/4.
- Rent growth: 4.7 % change in rents over the last 12 months (Idealista, El alquiler en España termina 2025 con una subida anual del 8,5%, 2025). Between 3 and 6: grade 3/4.
- Rail share of intercity access: 37.9 % of intercity passengers travelling by long-distance rail (rail vs rail + airport) (Ministerio de Transportes, Observatorio del Ferrocarril en España 2024 (rail, by city) and Eurostat avia_paoa (airport), 2024). Between 35 and 50: grade 3/4.
Country context (World Economic Forum)
- Spain: #3 of 110 in the WEF Travel & Tourism Development Index 2026
- Spain: #3 of 110 in the WEF Travel & Tourism Development Index 2026
Alicante in full · Granada in full
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