A total of 196,508 trips abroad were taken by people living in Malta during 2020, statistics issued by the National Statistics Office show.
This is a decrease of 72.2% over 2019. Total nights spent by outbound tourists went down by 64.1%, reaching nearly 1.7 million nights.
During the fourth quarter of 2020, around 29,080 people from Malta went abroad for tourism purposes. “Total outbound tourists for the fourth quarter in 2020 were estimated at 29,080, a decrease of 85% over the corresponding quarter of 2019.”
During the fourth quarter, a total of 18,614 outbound tourist trips were undertaken for visiting relatives and friends, while a further 4,836 were made for holiday purposes. The largest share of outbound tourists (60.5%) was aged between 25 and 44 years, and males accounted for most outbound tourists (59.9%).
Total nights spent by outbound tourists during the fourth quarter decreased by 66.2%, amounting to 427,576 nights. The majority of guest nights (87.3%) were spent in non-rented accommodation establishments. Such accommodation comprises of private residences, staying with friends or relatives and other private accommodation.
Total estimated expenditure by outbound tourists between October and December decreased by 85.6% over the same quarter of 2019, and stood at €23 million, equivalent to an average €793 per person. Italy remained the most popular destination, with a share of 32.1% of total tourist trips.