Between January and May, the number of Maltese passengers departing by air and sea amounted to 86,689, an increase of 4.2 per cent over the same period last year. Almost 86 per cent of the total, travelled to European Union destinations; the most visited countries being Italy and the UK, the National Statistics Office reported yesterday.

During this period, male outbound passengers exceeded female ones, the former accounting for 62.6 per cent of the total.

The largest proportion of outbound passengers – 47.3 per cent – comprised passengers aged between 25 and 44 years, followed by those in the 45-64 age bracket who accounted for 38.1 per cent of the total of Maltese travellers.

In May this year, Maltese residents departing by air and sea are estimated at 21,201.

Of these 18,674 travelled to European Union destinations, the most popular being Italy and the UK.

The total for May shows a drop of 3.1 per cent over the same month last year. Of these 81.7 per cent travelled by air.