Spanish boat registrations up 7 per cent to September
Spanish boat registrations rose 7 per cent in the first nine months of 2026, to 4,642 recreational boats. Motor boats and boats over 12 metres drove the growth.
Market NAMMERT Assekuradeur GmbH
Spain registered 4,642 recreational boats between January and September 2026, compared with 4,339 in the same period of 2025, an increase of 7 per cent. September alone added 271 boats, 6.3 per cent more than a year earlier. The figures come from the market report of ANEN, the Spanish boating industry association, which draws on the register kept by the Directorate General of the Merchant Navy.
Motor boats lead the growth with 2,004 registrations, up 16.2 per cent. Personal watercraft reached 1,319 (up 1.1 per cent), folding inflatables 555 (up 8.2 per cent), and sailing boats held steady at 210. RIBs were the only category to fall, down 4.1 per cent to 473. Boats up to 6 metres still make up about two thirds of the market with 3,149 units, but the fastest growth is at the top: up 38 per cent between 12 and 16 metres and up 51 per cent above 16 metres.
The charter fleet is recovering too. 1,440 boats were registered for hire, 8.1 per cent more than in 2025 but still 12.9 per cent below 2024. The Balearic Islands account for the most registrations overall, 733, and for 353 of the charter boats.
What this means for owners
For owners berthed in Spain this means newer and larger boats on the pontoons and more hire traffic around them. A new motor boat over 12 metres carries a very different hull value from the boat that used to sit in the same berth, so it is worth checking at purchase that the agreed value matches the price paid, not after the first season. Anyone who charters out their own boat part of the year should ask their insurer in writing whether commercial hire is included, because private use and hire are usually treated differently. The trend mainly concerns motor boats, personal watercraft and charter yachts in the Balearics and Catalonia.
Our view as NAMMERT, not part of the news. Your own policy wording decides.
Where this comes from
- Source: ANEN: El mercado náutico registra un +7 % de matriculaciones hasta septiembre (06.10.2026)
- Source: Boat Industry: Le marché nautique espagnol progresse de 7 % en neuf mois (07.10.2026)
The text is our own; the sources supplied the facts and figures, not the wording.
