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Spanish ports record flat passenger numbers in 2014

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Traffic dipped at leading cruise port Barcelona
Spanish ports finished 2014 virtually flat in passenger numbers and down 3.7% in vessel calls, according to a new report released by Puertos del Estado.

Year-end data report 7,668,532 cruise passengers, a minuscule 0.02% slippage of 1,719 persons from 2013. Cruise vessel calls totaled 3,702, down 3.7% from a year earlier.

The port list was topped, as usual, by Barcelona, with 2,364,292 passengers, down 9%, and 756 port calls, off by 9.7%.

Next in line were the Balearics, reporting 1,541,631 passengers, a tiny gain of 0.6%, on 678 vessel calls, down by 3%.

Standing third was Las Palmas, breaking the million mark with a 28.3% growth to 1,065,022 passengers aboard 503 calls, up 13% but only fourth in that listing. The passenger total was easily the year's outstanding performance among larger Spanish ports.

Number four was Santa Cruz de Tenerife,with 848,159 pax, a 6.8% gain, on 518 port calls, down a statistically insignificant 1.3% and ranking third.

Málaga came fifth in line, reporting 407,870 passengers, up by 2.7% on 227 calls, down by 8.8% to rank sixth.

Number six was the Bay of Cádiz, with 381,285 passengers, a 1.7% increase, on 285 calls, down by 8.4% but still standing fifth in that category.

Valencia came in seventh place with 373,014 passengers, a substantial  21.2% drop, aboard 197 port calls, down by 11.7%

Eighth in line was Vigo, reporting 176,019 passengers, a gain of 2.5%, on 81 port calls, down by 2.4% but ramking only number ten.

Cartagena's 137,985 passenger count was up by 2.8% to score ninth place, aboard 109 calls, down 5.2% but still standing number eight.

Close behind among the 10 leaders was A Coruña, with 129,597 passengers, despite a 17.4% slippage, on 87 vessel calls, down 19.4% but still in ninth position.

Overall, a flat year but a respectable showing in view of the weak Spanish source market, and a particularly good year for the Canary Islands.