Two thirds of hotel bookings in Spain have been CANCELLED

Worried tourists have cancelled two thirds of their hotel bookings in Spain as the country battles a new wave of coronavirus cases.

Cancellation rates are as high as 77 per cent among families and 70 per cent in the Balearic Islands which include Mallorca, in a fresh blow to Spain's vital tourism industry which accounts for 12 per cent of economic output.

At some hotels, the number of tourists cancelling holidays that they booked several weeks or months ago is higher than the number of new bookings.

Spain has recorded more than 9,000 new cases in the last seven days after seeing only 5,000 in the previous week, prompting fears of fresh border closures.

One town in Murcia has today re-imposed tough restrictions including a ban on entering or leaving the area after a spike in cases linked to a nightlife venue.

People wearing face masks walk along La Misericordia Beach in Malaga yesterday as Spain faces a fresh blow to its tourism industry because of coronavirus

Spain has recorded more than 9,000 new cases in the last seven days after seeing only 5,000 in the previous week, prompting fears of fresh border closures

The government of the Balearic Islands insists that the archipelago is 'safe for residents and visitors', but some tourists have become alarmed by the growth in cases.

A spokesman for the Association of Hotel Chains on the islands told Ultima Hora that 'the situation has turned around in the last week'.

'It has gone from having more reservations than cancellations to the opposite side,' they said.

'German, Austrian and Swiss tourism, as well as French and Italian, are the most affected by this uncertainty.'

According to research by tourism group Dingus, visitors who booked their trips between two and four months ago have cancelled more than 80 per cent of their holidays.

Cancellation rates overall are as high as 70 per cent in the Balearic Islands and 64 per cent in Spain as a whole.

While tourists travelling alone have cancelled 54 per cent of their reservations, families have scrapped as many as 77 per cent of their trips, the data shows.

The UK government has not made any changes in its rules regarding Spain, after scrapping the 14-day quarantine rule for people returning from Spain to England after July 10.

Scotland also exempted Spain from its own 14-day rules this week after initially keeping it on the quarantine list.

Spain is also one of the countries exempt from the Foreign Office's general warning against non-essential travel.

Two people sit at an outdoor bar as they enjoy the sunny weather at Barceloneta beach in Catalonia over the weekend

In Magaluf, Wigan holidaymaker Charmaine Bell, 37, told the Mirror: 'I'm not too worried really, because we work in ASDA we are used to Covid and it really doesn't scare us anymore, we know how to deal with it and be sensible.'

Sunseeker Mark Nolan, 36, added: 'It is a little worrying they could be put on the unsafe list because that was one of the things that put us off coming but to be honest my advice to people at the moment would be to just come.

'It really hasn't been that bad to deal with and we are having great fun, if they did bring in quarantine there is very little we can do about it is there?'

Spanish tourism minister Reyes Maroto said yesterday that she hoped there would be no need for France to close the border after a spike in cases in Catalonia.

Madrid has voiced concern after French Prime Minister Jean Castex on Sunday did not rule out closing the border.

But Maroto told an event organised by Europa Press that she was optimistic after data showed infections in Catalonia had fallen over the past three days.

'Let's hope that with this better data we don't have to close a border that for us is very important for mobility with our European partners.'

Catalonia, which borders France, has been at the heart of a rebound in coronavirus cases since Spain lifted a nationwide lockdown one month ago

Nearly 7,000 cases have been logged there in the past 14 days, nearly half the nationwide total, though the rate has dropped sharply in the past days.

Catalonia registered 63 new cases on Tuesday, 70 on Monday and 994 on Sunday, down from a peak of 1,226 on Saturday.

People sit on beach towels on Cala de Alfacar beach on the island of Menorca yesterday amid fears of a second wave of coronavirus cases in Spain

Barcelona cut the number of people allowed onto the city's beaches after crowds formed over the weekend despite advice to stay home.

However, Catalan leader Quim Torra ruled out returning to a strict lockdown, telling the regional parliament: 'Catalonia can't be closed.'

Elsewhere, Madrid's regional government said it could make face masks compulsory in all situations, unless the central government imposed stricter controls on arrivals at the capital's Barajas airport.

'If the health ministry assumes its responsibilities...we can continue with the measures taken until now,' deputy regional leader Ignacio Aguado said.

Madrid and the Canary Islands are the only Spanish regions that do not already have such a rule.

Health Minister Salvador Illa told parliament there were 224 active coronavirus clusters in Spain, mostly linked to parties, family events and fruit harvesting.

Meanwhile the town of Totana in Murcia has re-imposed tough restrictions including an entry and exit ban and restrictions on movement.

Bars and restaurants will have to close their indoor seating areas after 55 cases linked to a nightlife venue, according to ABC.

Spain has confirmed 28,426 deaths from the pandemic after recording a total of 267,551 positive test results.

Official figures show 9,011 new cases of Covid-19 being diagnosed in the last seven days, up from 5,128 a week ago.

The number had been only 2,491 a fortnight ago on July 9 and 2,016 a week before that as Spain initially appeared to have the outbreak under control.