According to Spanish estate agent Mercers, 45.5% more foreign tourists visited the Spanish region of Murcia in the first five months of 2014 compared to the same period last year. This is the highest official figure since 2009 and British visitors account for almost half of all visitors.

Chris Mercer, director at Mercers, says: “As a region, Murcia is not a big-hitter in tourism terms, dwarfed by the likes of Catalonia and the Balearics in sheer volume, but there are encouraging signs that it could be moving up through the ranks. The fact is Murcia and the Costa Calida have been rather unknown, even among Spaniards, but with talk of the Paramount Theme Park and general increased publicity, awareness is being raised.”

According to Frontur, Spain’s Institute of Tourism Studies, a total of 266,311 foreign tourists visited Murcia between January and May this year, 83,220 more than the same five months in 2013 – a 45.5% increase. Visitors from the UK are up 57% on a year ago thanks to a stronger Sterling and problems in Turkey and Egypt.

Spain, as a whole, has recorded 21,435,167 international tourists for the first five months of 2014, up 8.2% on 2013.