The Malta Tourism Authority said it is pleased with the results achieved in inbound tourism performance during the month of December 2015 and the cumulative period January to December 2015 published by the National Statistics Office yesterday.
Inbound tourism performance reached new record heights in 2015. Total inbound visitors reached 72,568 in December 2015, increasing by 5,950 or +8.9% over the corresponding month in 2014. This figure establishes a new record in inbound tourism for the month of December. Total inbound tourists (excluding overnight cruise passengers) increased by 9.6%. Tourists spent a total of 611,353 nights in December 2015; 26,089 more nights than in December 2014. Furthermore tourist spent €53.7 million in December 2015, representing an increase of 4%.
Inbound tourist arrivals grew by 5.4% in 2015 to reach a total of 1.8 million. 2015 marks the 6th consecutive year of growth. Nights stayed by tourists during 2015 have gone up by 695,047 to reach 14.2 million. More importantly, the highest increase was recorded in tourist expenditure reaching the figure of €1.65 billion, €115 million more or +7.5% when compared to 2014. It is very relevant to note that the per capita expenditure increased from €905 in 2014 to €918 in 2015.
In 2015, all the major source markets feature increased tourism flows with the exception of Libya and Russia. The United Kingdom recorded the highest increase in absolute terms (+38,375), followed by Italy (+26,388). Furthermore, the United States registered the highest percentage increase of 16.4% over 2014.
MTA CEO Mr Paul Bugeja stated that this latest data published by the National Statistics Office bears witness to the exceptional results achieved by our tourism industry during 2015. We are most pleased both with the increased average spent per tourist arrival and with the higher growth rate of 9.4% recorded in the off peak months compared to the 2.7% for the peak months of summer indicating that our strategies to improve on quality tourism and at the same time reduce seasonality is bearing the desired results.
PN reacts
The PN said it was pleased with the statistics issued for 2015 and said that it reflects a trend that has been in motion for some years. It also said the results would not be possible without the decision to introduce low cost airlines as well as diversification of routes as well as effective administration of EU funds.
However, the PN said it was concerned at the fact that the wealth being generated through tourism was not being shared equitably with workers in the sector, meaning that less students are opting for a career in the field.
It also said that the increase in numbers was absorbed in non traditional forms of accommodation and said that this trend should be looked into.