MADRID - A TOURIST bus veered off a highway in southern Spain and overturned on Saturday, killing nine people and seriously injuring 19 others, emergency services said.

The fatalities included a seven-year-old girl, they said.

Another 16 people were slightly injured, while two were unharmed, in the accident that occurred just before 8pm local time near the Mediterranean port of Malaga.

The area had been lashed by strong winds and rain throughout the day.

The bus was carrying tourists from Finland to an airport where they were due to board a plane to return home, the Spanish-language cable news channel CNN+ reported.

It went off the highway after being hit on its side by an all-wheel-drive vehicle that made an illegal attempt to overtake the bus, it said.

Police detained the driver of the 4X4 on suspicion of driving above the legal blood alcohol limit.

Emergency services set up a field hospital at the site of the accident to provide first aid to the victims, who were then transported to hospitals along the Costa del Sol, a popular destination for northern European sun seekers.

Most of the passengers on the bus were traveling with TUI Spain, one of the country's biggest inbound tour operators.

Spain received a record 59.2 million international tourists last year, a 1.7 per cent increase over the previous year, making it the most visited country in the world after France.

British nationals accounted for the largest group of foreign visitors, with 16.3 million arrivals in 2007. -- AFP