Spain is poised for its busiest summer if not on record then certainly for a decade.
The Mediterranean country has long been the UK’s favourite overseas destination, with 17.8million of us visiting in 2024 according to the most recent research from the Office of National Statistics – attracting more than 8 million more visitors than closest rival, France.
With the summer term in private schools already over, and state schools set to break up next week, Spain’s tourism figures, buoyed by uncertainty over destinations further afield because of the Middle East conflict, are likely to go through the roof in the next two months.
For British holidaymakers heading to the nation’s mainland and the islands, it could also be an expensive summer – with resorts, bars and restaurants looking to cash in on its 2026 popularity.
And nowhere knows how to profit from tourists’ thirst like Ibiza’s famous clubs and prices. Already eye-watering for many, costs are continuing to creep up, say those who’ve visited already this season.
Drink prices across the island’s major clubs – including Ushuaïa, pictured – are now roughly the same price wherever you go, with water around £13 for a small bottle, up from £12 a year ago
Breaking the €15 mark for first time: Ibiza’s clubs have long been home to Spain’s most expensive drinks prices, with a bottle of water now costing £13
The cost of a small 500ml bottle of water has been priced around €14 (£12) for several years but now appears to have finally broken the €15 (£12) mark, setting clubbers heading to the likes of Amnesia, Pacha and Club Chinois back nearly £1 more now.
One of the White Isle’s most popular clubs Ushuaïa, an outdoor poolside venue with a glitzy hotel attached in Platja d’en Bossa, is among the nightspots where revellers are reporting some of the highest prices.
Drinks costs posted on menus at the club this summer, which has Calvin Harris and David Guetta once again in residence, include a bottle of Heineken at €18 (£15.41), water at €15 (£12.85) and a vodka and tonic for €26 (£22.27).
One clubber visiting in May wrote on a social media post about the club’s drinks prices: ‘Can’t believe they can charge €15 for a water. Can’t believe I willingly bought it.’
Another added: ‘€15 for a small soft drink or water is absolutely insane, it should be illegal.’
The food menu at Cafe Mambo, on the island’s west coast, has risen by three euros on signature dishes in two years
A VIP table at Ushuaia in Ibiza currently costs €5,500, based on ten people sharing it for the night – the equivalent of €550 – around £471
Over at Ibiza lounge restaurant Cafe Mambo, prices for the brand’s signature burger were €35 (around £30) in 2024 (top) with the same dish now costing €3 more at €38 (around £32.50)
A VIP table for 10 people on Friday 7th August to watch Calvin Harris spin club anthems costs €550 – around £471 – per person, with no food included – and water at €25 – around £21.
Over at Amnesia, in the party hub of San Antonio, it’s €24 (£20.55) for a shot of spirit and a mixer, or €20 (£17) for a glass of wine.
Food prices at the club scene’s most popular venues have also risen.
Cafe Mambo, famous for its chilled out sunsets vibes and laid-back DJ sets, charged €35 (around £30) for its signature Mambo burger in 2024 – in 2026, it costs €3 more at €38 (around £32.50).
Ditto a Josper-grilled salmon dish, which was €42 (£35) in 2024, and is now €45 (£38.50).
Across the mainland and islands, airports and resorts are preparing for an influx of visitors as peak season begins in earnest – with last summer’s overtourism protests and fears over the new EU digital border system (EES) not swaying visitors who want their fortnight in the sun.
Valencia City Council revealed at the end of June that it’s made more than 4.7million seats available on 40 airlines into the city this summer, 11 per cent more than in 2025.
In Malaga, Andalucia’s tourism powerhouse, according to new figures released by the region’s Institute of Statistics and Cartography, more than 644,000 hotel guests stayed in May alone, up 4 per cent on last summer – and 83 per cent of them from abroad.
Holidaymakers starting their summer breaks this week though are being urged to take care in extreme temperatures once more as another heatwave hits.
Thousands of people were evacuated in southern France on Monday as ‘catastrophic’ wildfires ravaged the region, while poisonous clouds swept through Greece and Costa Brava in Spain was put on alert.
It comes as temperatures across Europe are on the rise again, predicted to reach 40C in parts still suffering the aftermath of a recent record-breaking heatwave.
Hundreds of firefighters are battling blazes that have devastated more than 19,000 hectares (42,000 acres) of land – an area more than twice the size of Manhattan – across Portugal, Spain, France and Greece.
In southwestern France near the city of Perpignan, 700 firefighters backed by special aircraft battled to control a ‘gigantic’ blaze spreading in a hard-to-reach remote area, with more than 10,000 local residents evacuated.
Fanned by wind, intense heat and exceptionally dry air, the fire has nearly tripled in size since early Sunday, devouring 4,600 hectares and leaving a firefighter and a resident injured, local authorities said.
‘The fire came within 300 metres of the houses. We were taken aback by how fast it spread, it was staggering – bordering on panic,’ said Patrice, a 53-year-old resident of the village of Trevillach.
‘We started seeing smoke around 10.30pm, then it kept coming closer and closer. Someone from the town hall knocked on our door around 1.00am to tell us to leave,’ said Charlotte Pignol, 30, who was among the first to be evacuated from her home early on Sunday.
The blazes come shortly after a heatwave in June, one of Europe’s worst, during which thousands of excess deaths were registered and which would have been ‘virtually impossible’ without climate change, the World Weather Attribution group of scientists said.
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