Total inbound visitors for March were estimated at 167,197, an increase of 18.4 per cent when compared to the corresponding month in 2017, the NSO said today.

Inbound Tourism: March 2018

A total of 137,504 inbound tourist trips were carried out for holiday purposes, while a further 15,673 were undertaken for business purposes. Inbound tourists from EU Member States went up by 17.3 per cent to 144,345 when compared to the corresponding month in 2017. Most inbound tourists were aged between 25 and 44 (34.8 per cent), followed by those within the 45-64 age bracket (32.6 per cent).

Total nights spent went up by 26.9 per cent when compared to March 2017, reaching nearly 1.1 million nights. The largest share of guest nights (63.4 per cent) was spent in collective accommodation establishments.

Total tourist expenditure was estimated at €116.0 million, an increase of 20.2 per cent over the corresponding month in 2017.

January-March 2018

Inbound tourist trips for the first three months of 2018 reached 414,400, an increase of 18.8 per cent over the same period in 2017. Total nights spent by inbound tourists went up by 18.4 per cent, reaching nearly 2.7 million nights.

Total tourism expenditure reached nearly €271.5 million, 14.4 per cent higher than that recorded for 2017. Total expenditure per capita stood at €655, a decrease of 3.7 per cent when compared to 2017.