Total cruise passenger traffic during the third quarter of 2026 amounted to 325,681, a decrease of 7.0 per cent over the same quarter of the previous year, the NSO said Tuesday.

There were 139 cruise liner calls during the third quarter of 2026, a decrease of 1 when compared to the corresponding quarter of the previous year. Transit passengers accounted for the absolute majority of total traffic, reaching 268,114 (82.3 per cent). On average, every vessel that berthed in Malta carried 2,343 passengers, 159 less than the previous year. 

Passengers from EU Member States comprised 56.2 per cent of total traffic. The major markets were Italy, accounting for 18.3 per cent of the total passengers, followed by Spain, with 12.7 per cent. The total number of passengers from non-EU countries stood at 142,541, where the United Kingdom accounted for 20.8 per cent of the total passengers and 10.6 per cent came from the United States.

On a gender basis, female passengers made up 51.8 per cent of the total. The largest share of passengers fell within the 40-59 age bracket (33.0 per cent) and were followed by those aged between 60 and 79 years (29.8 per cent).

January-September 2026

During the first three quarters of 2026, total cruise passengers stood at 647,237. Of these, 50.2 per cent came from EU Member States.

The majority of the passengers were females amounting to 344,589 or 53.2 per cent of the total. Most passengers were between 60 and 79 years old, totalling 231,022 (35.7 per cent). These were followed by passengers aged 40-59 years, reaching 194,679 (30.1 per cent).

There were 298 cruise liner calls during the first three quarters of the year, with an average of 2,172 passengers per vessel, compared to 294 calls and an average of 2,351 passengers per vessel in the comparative period of 2025.