Málaga vs Santiago de Compostela

Santiago de Compostela leads Málaga by 1 points on the TRAIL Index, 67 to 66. Málaga grades better on 11 measures, Santiago de Compostela on 8; the same 37 measures from public sources for both.

Scores by each organisation's criteria

• TRAIL Index: Málaga 66, Santiago de Compostela 67
• OECD: Málaga 65, Santiago de Compostela 65
• UN Tourism: Málaga 69, Santiago de Compostela 70
• UNDRR: Málaga 64, Santiago de Compostela 52

Theme by theme

• Demand and seasonality: Málaga 75, Santiago de Compostela 75
• Economy and jobs: Málaga 63, Santiago de Compostela 83
• Climate and hazards: Málaga 45, Santiago de Compostela 65
• Water and environment: Málaga 63, Santiago de Compostela 75
• Community and housing: Málaga 65, Santiago de Compostela 69
• Access and continuity: Málaga 73, Santiago de Compostela 52

Where Málaga is stronger

• Nights in the three busiest months: 28.9 % of annual nights (Ayuntamiento de Málaga, Observatorio de Turismo Sostenible (INSTO): Evolución mensual de las pernoctaciones, 2025). At or below 30: grade 4/4.
• Average length of stay: 2.2 nights per visitor (Área de Turismo y Promoción de la Ciudad del Ayuntamiento de Málaga / INE, 2024). Between 1.8 and 2.2: grade 1/4.
• Flood hazard: medium (region figure) (World Bank GFDRR ThinkHazard, current (retrieved 2026)). Grade 2/4.
• Wastewater safely treated: 100 % of domestic wastewater safely treated (EMASA (Empresa Municipal de Aguas de Málaga), Estaciones Depuradoras de Aguas Residuales, 2026). At or above 95: grade 4/4.
• Municipal waste per resident: 425.4 kg per resident per year (Ayuntamiento de Málaga, Observatorio de Turismo Sostenible (INSTO): Cantidad de toneladas de Residuos Sólidos Urbanos (RSU) recogidos por habitante y año, 2025). Between 350 and 450: grade 3/4.
• Tourism intensity: 8.4 visitor nights per resident per year (Ayuntamiento de Málaga, Observatorio de Turismo Sostenible (INSTO): Evolución anual de las pernoctaciones, 2025). Between 5 and 10: grade 3/4.
• Access redundancy: 4 independent ways in: international airport, intercity rail, port, motorway (Ayuntamiento de Málaga - Área de Turismo, Visita Málaga, 2026). At or above 4: grade 4/4.
• Air traffic recovery: 137.8 % 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: 32.1 % of airport passengers carried by the largest airline group (Aena, detailed traffic statistics (passengers by airline, route and country), Sep 2025 – Aug 2026). Between 30 and 40: grade 2/4.
• Air route concentration: 43 % of international air passengers on routes to the 3 largest partner countries (Aena, detailed traffic statistics (passengers by airline, route and country), Sep 2025 – Aug 2026). Between 35 and 50: grade 3/4.
• Early warning and emergency plan: An updated city plan with public early warning for heat, flood or fire (Ayuntamiento de Málaga, Área de Seguridad y Protección Civil, 2024–2025). Grade 3/4.

Where Santiago de Compostela is stronger

• Domestic share of nights: 47.6 % of nights by residents of the same country (Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE) via Concello de Santiago / GaliciaXa, Jan–Jun 2025). At or above 45: grade 4/4.
• Largest foreign market: 11.7 % of international arrivals or nights (INE, foreign tourists by municipality and country of residence (mobile-phone positioning, table 52048), 2025). At or below 15: grade 4/4.
• Unemployment rate: 8 % of the labour force (Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE), Indicadores Urbanos (Edición 2024), 2023). Between 5 and 8: grade 3/4.
• Extreme heat days: 1.4 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.
• Tropical nights: 1.4 nights a year with a minimum at or above 20°C (last 5 full years) (ERA5 reanalysis via Open-Meteo, 2021–2025). At or below 10: grade 4/4.
• Water scarcity: very low (region figure) (World Bank GFDRR ThinkHazard, current (retrieved 2026)). Grade 4/4.
• Short-let density: 1.1 short-term rental listings per 100 dwellings (Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE), Medición del número de viviendas turísticas en España y su capacidad / El Correo Gallego, 2022). Between 1 and 2: grade 2/4.
• Dedicated tourism funding: A dedicated source partly ring-fenced for residents, infrastructure or sustainability (El Correo Gallego / Concello de Santiago, 'El TSXG avala la tasa turística de Santiago y rechaza todos los argumentos de los hoteleros', 2025–2026). 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

Málaga in full · Santiago de Compostela in full

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