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Malta's tourism industry 1964-2005 • Tourism departures 2004 • Tourism departures 2005
Tourism departures 2006

Data bank 2006 index
December - 46,400 fewer tourists visit Malta in 2006
November - 3% increase in November tourist arrivals
October - Seven more Italian tourists in October
September - September tourism plummets as per capita income increases
August - 8% drop in August tourism figures
July - Malta loses 16,000 tourists in seven months
June - June tourist and income figures still on downward spiral
May - 9% drop in May arrivals
April - 11% more tourists in April
March - Tourism arrivals down 4% in Q1 2006
January - Five per cent fewer tourists in January, but business travel is up

46,400 fewer tourists visit Malta in 2006

Valletta, 26/01/07 - There were 6,070 more tourists in Malta last month than in December 2005, an increase of 15 per cent.  However, the total number of tourists to the islands last year was down 46,377 over 2005. And if that was not bad enough, expenditure by visitors last year was down 1.2 per cent to Lm422.4 million.

Meantime, the rise in traffic in December was mainly from the British, Italian and Dutch markets, the National Statistics Office (NSO) reports. The increases from the UK and Italy can be directly attributed to the introduction of Ryanair's services from these two countries. On the other hand, in December was a drop in visitors from France, Austria and Norway.

January-December 2006
The islands hosted 1,124,233 tourists in 2006 compared to 1,170,610 in 2005. This decrease mainly reflected fewer tourists from the country's core markets - the United Kingdom, Germany and France, whilst the number of tourists from Italy, Russia and Denmark rose during the year.

The NSO's ongoing frontier survey of tourists departing by air shows a 3.9 per cent decrease in total nights spent in 2006.

3% increase in November tourist arrivals

Valletta, 29/12/06 - Something 'odd' happened in November - there was a 2.7 per cent increase in tourist arrivals compared to the same month in 2005. Last month 71,535 tourists visited the islands, up from 69,652 in November 2005.

"We've become so accustomed to see monthly drops this year, that a positive result is something of a surprise", an hotelier told Island Travel Trader Online.

The increase, according to the National Statistics Office (NSO), is because of a rise in holidaymakers from France, Italy and Germany "contrasted by a decline...from the United Kingdom, Sweden and Norway".

January-November 2006
The downward trend, however, continued when calculating arrivals for 2006. In the first 11 months of the year 1,077,749 tourists visited the Maltese islands, down 5.4 per cent from 1,138,914 in the same period of 2005.

This decrease was mainly reflected by "fewer tourists from the United Kingdom, Germany and France, while tourists from Italy and Russia are estimated to have increased during the period", says the NSO.

Meantime, there was also a 4.2 per cent decrease in total nights spent during the period January to November 2006. Tourists also spent less in the first 11 months of the year - Lm408.3 million, a decrease of 1.6 per cent over the same period last year.

Seven more Italian tourists in October

Valletta, 29/11/06 - The decline in tourism arrival figures has reached double-digit proportions, with the news that in October there was a drop of 10 per cent in the number of visitors to the islands.

According to the National Statistics Office (NSO), there were 116,427 visitors in October - down from 129,334 a year ago.

There were 7,069 fewer visitors from the United Kingdom, 46,830 compared to 53,899 in October 2005. There were fewer German (-3,633) and fewer French (-2,096). The downward trend continued with the Austrian market, down 1,109, the Belgian market, down 1,092, and the Dutch market, down 1,617.

On the bright side, there were a few increases in October arrivals. From Italy, 5,642 tourists traveled to Malta by air in October, up from 5,635 12 months ago - an increase of seven. However, when including Italian arrivals by sea as well, the increase was of 163 more visitors.

There were also moderate increases in arrivals from Switzerland (983), Sweden (518) and Russia (507).

January-October 2006
For yet another year, Malta can boast of hosting more than one million tourists, but barely. In the first 10 months of the year 1,006,214 people visited the islands, a drop of 5.1 per cent over the comparable period last year.

"In line with developments during the month of October, this decrease mainly reflected fewer tourists from the United Kingdom, Germany and France", explains the NSO. "Tourists from Italy, Russia and Denmark are estimated to have increased during the period".

Total tourist expenditure from January to October is estimated at Lm384.5 million, a decrease of 1.6 per cent over the same period last year.

September tourism plummets as per capita income increases

Valletta, 01/11/06 - Malta's tourism figures continue their downward spiral with a drop of 8.7 per cent in departures in September. According to the National Statistics Office (NSO) 121,954 tourists visited the islands in September, 11,637 fewer than in September 2005.

The primary reasons for the drop were dramatically fewer visitors from Malta's major source markets - the United Kingdom (-14,915), France (-2,860) and Germany (-2,714).

However, there were relatively small increases from Italy (+2,616), Russia (+1,392) and Denmark (+1,302) and the 'others' category (+1,683).

According to the NSO there was "a drop in holidaymakers" in September.

January-September 2006
According to the NSO's tortuous use of English, "departures of inbound tourists during the first nine months of 2006 are estimated at 889,790, implying a drop of 4.5 per cent over the comparable period of last year".

Following September's trend, in the first nine months of the year there was a decrease in the number of visitors from the UK, Germany and France. From the United Kingdom alone, there was whopping drop of 44,856 tourists compared to last year.

On the other hand, the number of tourists from Italy, Russia and Belgium rose. The Italian market performed well, with an increase of 15,521 - up to 95,875.

The NSO says that, according to its "ongoing frontier survey of tourists departing by air" there was "a 2.9 per cent decrease in total nights spent during the first nine months of 2006".

8% drop in August tourism figures

Valletta, 27/09/06 - As expected, August turned out to be a "washout" as far as tourism is concerned. The industry's peak month showed a drop of 7.9 per cent in arrivals. Last month, 164,302 tourists visited Malta, down from 178,319 in August 2005, according to the National Statistics Office.

Fewer Britons (-15,041) and Germans (-1,910) travelled to the islands in August, on the other hand there were more Italians (+3,429) and Russians (+1,457). However, "expenditure showed no significant change", according to the NSO.

January-August 2006
In the first eight months of the year 767,836 tourists visited the islands, a drop of 3.7 per cent over the comparable period in 2005.

Following August's trend, so far in 2006 there has been a slackening in tourist traffic from the United Kingdom and Germany. There has also been a significant decline in tourists from France.

Meanwhile, the number of tourists from Italy, Russia and Belgium is estimated to have increased in 2006.

The NSO's "frontier survey of tourists departing by air indicates a 2.6 per cent decrease in total nights spent in the first eight months of 2006".

Total tourist expenditure during the period under review is estimated at Lm292.9 million, an increase of 0.2 per cent over the same period last year.

Malta loses 16,000 tourists in seven months

Valletta, 31/08/06 - July was another bad month for tourism; the number of departures dropped 2.9 per cent to 131,806 from 135,751 in July 2005.

Malta's top three markets registered drops in July, the highest was from the United Kingdom with a plunge of 5,888 fewer departures. In July 2005 47,426 UK residents travelled to Malta, last month that figure slumped to 41,538.

The French market did not fare that well either. In July 2006 there were 9,392 French departures, compared to 12,495 the previous July - a drop of 3,103.

The drop in departures for Germany was of 2,096, down from 12,308 in 2005 to 10,212 in July 2006.

Meanwhile, there were increases - from Russia, up 2,057 departures to 5,062 from 3,005 in July 2005; from Denmark, 4,281 tourists from 2,936 last year and Italy. Malta's northern neighbour produced 1,991 more tourists than a year ago. The ‘others’ category was also up on July 2005.

According to the National Statistics Office, "the decrease in tourists during the month reflected primarily a drop in holidaymakers".

January-July 2006
This year is not shaping out to be a memorable one. In the first seven months of the year there has been a drop in tourist departures of 2.5 per cent. Put another way 15,780 fewer people have travelled to the islands this year compared to the first seven months of 2005 - 619,314 in 2005 against 603,534 this year.

June tourist and income figures still on downward spiral

Valletta, 31/07/06 - In June the islands hosted 109,038 tourists, a drop of 4.3 per cent over June 2005. And in the first half of the year, 471,728 tourists visited Malta - 2.4 per cent fewer than in the first six months of last year, the National Statistics Office reports.

In June the British market plunged 16.3 per cent with 43,682 tourists compared to 52,173 12 months before. Other drops included the Russian, Libyan and Swedish markets as well as the "others" category.

Tourists from Germany and France, on the other hand, went up by 24.2 and 22.8 per cent respectively. There were 14,033 Germans compared to 11,303 in June 2005 and 7,628 French from 6,211 a year ago.

Other increases in tourists came from the Danish, Italian and Belgian markets. Switzerland notched up an increase of one person in June 2006; arrivals from that country were 1,932 last month compared to 1,931 in June 2005.

Purpose of visit
In June 89,264 people traveled to the islands for a holiday, a drop of 5.1 points compared to last year. Business travelers were also down to 8,320, according to the NSO.

January-June 2006
In the first six months of the year 471,728 people visited the Maltese islands, a decrease of 2.4 per cent over the comparable period last year.

The number of British, German and French tourists decreased by 4.3, 4.2 and 5.0 per cent respectively, altogether accounting for 61.4 per cent of the total. Other drops included those from the Swedish, Libyan and Danish markets.

On the other hand, Italian tourists increased by 18.9 per cent, accounting for 7.8 per cent of the total. Other increases included those from the Dutch, Belgian and Norwegian markets.

Accommodation
In the period under review, the number of nights spent by tourists departing by air was estimated at 4,284,014, a decrease of 3.6 per cent when compared to the same period in 2005. The number of nights spent in hotels went down by 2.8 per cent and accounted for 68.9 per cent of the total nights spent.

Tourists opting for an overnight stay in Gozo were estimated at 17,528 - 3.7 per cent of total tourists in the first half of the year.

Tourism expenditure
In the period under review, expenditure on package travel decreased by Lm1.0 million to an estimated Lm79.5 million, a decline of 1.2 per cent over the corresponding period a year ago. Non-package tourists spent Lm18.4 million on airfares and Lm12.1 million on accommodation thereby decreasing total expenditure on non-package travel by approximately Lm1.6 million or 4.9 per cent.

Other expenditure from both package and non-package tourists increased by Lm0.5 million to Lm55.5 million. Overall, in the period under review total tourist expenditure decreased by Lm2.1 million or 1.2 per cent.

9% drop in May arrivals

Valletta, 01/07/06 - In May an estimated 102,740 tourists visited the Maltese islands, a drop of 8.7 per cent over the corresponding month last year. Tourists departing by air were estimated at 101,940 - a drop of nine per cent when compared to May 2005, reports the National Statistics Office.

The German, British and French markets - representing 58 per cent of the total number of tourists - registered decreases in May. In total, these vital markets went down by 15.7 per cent compared to the same month last year. There were also fewer Americans, Belgians and Danes and 'others' in May 2006.

Year-on-year, tourists from the Dutch and Italian markets went up by 13.6 and 13.0 per cent respectively, jointly accounting for a share of 12.8 per cent of the total. Other increases included traffic from Russia, Austria and Sweden.

Purpose of visit
In May there were an estimated 83,448 holidaymakers, a drop of 11.7 per cent over May 2005, whereas the number of business travellers went up to 11,129.

January-May 2006
In the first five months of 2006 there were 364,297 tourists, according to the NSO - a decrease of 1.4 per cent over the comparable period last year. Tourists departing by air decreased by 1.7 per cent.

Across air and sea, decreases were recorded in the German, French and Danish markets, at 10.6 per cent, 10.6 per cent and 23.4 per cent respectively. Other decreases included those from the Swedish, Libyan and Swiss markets.

On the other hand, the number of Italian and Dutch tourists increased by 19.6 and 10.7 per cent respectively, together accounting for a share of 12.3 per cent of total tourists. Other increases were recorded from the Russian, Norwegian and Belgian markets.

Accommodation
In the period under review, the number of nights spent by tourists departing by air was estimated at 3,247,494, a decrease of 5.5 per cent when compared to the corresponding period in 2005. The number of nights spent in hotels went down by 2.5 per cent and accounted for 71.3 per cent of the total nights spent.

Tourists opting for an overnight stay in Gozo were estimated at 11,751 - 3.3 per cent of total tourists in the first five months of the year.

Tourism expenditure
In the period under review, expenditure on package travel decreased by Lm3.5 million to an estimated Lm58.7 million, a decline of 5.7 per cent over the corresponding period a year ago.

Non-package tourists spent Lm14.3 million on airfares and Lm9.8 million on accommodation thereby increasing total expenditure on non-package travel by approximately Lm0.7 million or 2.9 per cent. Other expenditure from both package and non-package tourists remained practically at the same level as a year earlier at Lm41.0 million.

Overall, in the period under review total tourist expenditure decreased by Lm2.9 million or 2.3 per cent.

11% more tourists in April

Valletta, 31/05/06 - They said April would be a good month for the tourism industry, and they were right. There was an increase of 10.8 per cent in arrivals last month compared to April 2005. An estimated 97,784 tourists visited the islands in April, according to the National Statistics Office.

There were more Italian, British and German tourists in April and, combined, they represented 62.6 per cent of the total number of visitors during the month. There were also increases from Russia, Norway and Belgium plus the catch-all 'others' segment.

However, there were 23.2 per cent fewer French tourists in April compared to a year ago. And fewer Danes, Swedes and Libyans travelled to Malta last month compared to April 2005.

Purpose of visit
In April there was an estimated 77,674 holidaymakers, up 8.9 per cent over last year, whilst the number of business travellers also increased to 10,376.

January-April 2006
In the first four months of the year 259,950 tourists visited the islands, an increase of 1.1 per cent over the comparable period last year.

Accommodation
In the period under review, the number of nights spent by tourists departing by air was estimated at 2,401,666, a decrease of 1.5 per cent when compared to the corresponding period in 2005. The number of nights spent in hotels remained practically at the same level as a year earlier - 72.4 per cent of total nights spent.

Tourists opting for an overnight stay in Gozo were estimated at 6,924 - 2.6 per cent of total tourists in the first four months of the year.

Tourism expenditure
In the period under review, expenditure on package travel decreased by Lm3.2 million to an estimated Lm40.6 million, a decline of 7.2 per cent over the corresponding period a year ago. Non-package tourists spent Lm10.3 million on airfares and Lm7.0 million on accommodation, thereby increasing total expenditure on non-package travel by approximately Lm1.5 million or 9.2 per cent. Other expenditure by both package and non-package tourists increased by 2.5 per cent to Lm29.0 million. Overall in the period under review, total tourist expenditure decreased by Lm1.0 million or 1.2 per cent.

Tourism arrivals down 4% in Q1 2006

Valletta, 05/05/06 - In March inbound tourism was estimated at 64,343, a shortfall of 9.7 per cent over the corresponding month last year. According to National Statistic Office (NSO) figures 64,018 tourists left the islands by air in March, down 9.3 per cent when compared to March 2005.

The number of visitors from Malta's most important market, the United Kingdom, was down a whopping 13.5 per cent in March compared to March '05; however, the UK still represented 44.4 per cent of the total number of visitors.

In March there were also drops in tourists from Italy, Denmark, Sweden, Austria, France and the catch-all 'others' category.

On the up side, there were 8.2 per cent more visitors from Germany in March than a year ago. Other increases were recorded from the US, Norway, Belgium, Libya, Russia, the Netherlands and Switzerland.

Purpose of visit
According to the NSO there were 49,896 holidaymakers in March, a drop of 14.6 per cent compared to March 2005; however, business traffic went up by 8,969 over last March.

January-March 2006
In the first quarter of 2006 the islands hosted 162,164 visitors, a decrease of 3.9 per cent over Q1 of 2005. The number of tourists leaving by air dropped by 3.4 per cent.

Malta's bread-and-butter market, the United Kingdom, accounted for 46.6 per cent of the total number of visitors in Q1 of 2006, even though the number of UK departures dropped by 1.9 per cent over 2005.

Between January and March there were also decreases in the number of visitors from Sweden, Italy, Denmark, Austria, Russia, Switzerland and 'others'.

On the other hand, the number of German tourists increased by 0.8 per cent, accounting for 13 per cent of the total. Other increases were recorded from France, the Netherlands, the US, Belgium, Norway and Libya.

Accommodation
In Q1 the number of bed nights dropped 9.6 per cent to 1,551,596 compared to the same period in 2005. The number of nights spent in hotels went down by 7.9 per cent and accounted for 74.1 per cent of total nights spent. Visitors opting for a stay in Gozo numbered 3,769 - 2.3 per cent of the total.

Tourism expenditure
In the first quarter of 2006 expenditure on package travel decreased by Lm4.1 million to an estimated Lm23.4 million, a decline of 15 per cent over the corresponding period a year ago. Non-package tourists spent Lm6.7 million on airfares and Lm4.6 million on accommodation, thereby increasing total expenditure on non-package travel by approximately Lm0.8 million or eight per cent.

Other expenditure from both package and non-package tourists remained in the region of Lm18.4 million.

Overall, in the period under review total tourist expenditure decreased by Lm3.3 million or 5.9 per cent.

Five per cent fewer tourists in January, but business travel is up

Valletta, 28/02/06 - January did not turn out to be a particularly good month for tourism; 50,520 tourists left the islands, a drop of 5.2 per cent over January 2005, says the National Statistics Office (NSO).

Tourist departures by air were estimated at 50,092, a drop of 4.2 per cent compared to January 05. And 428 tourists left the islands by sea in January compared to 855 12 months ago.

The number of tourists travelling by air to the United Kingdom increased by 5.1 per cent, when compared to the same month last year, representing 46.6 per cent of total air departures. Other increases in tourist departures by air were recorded from France, Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands and Norway.

On the other hand, the German market registered a decrease of 29.1 per cent compared to January 2005 reaching a total of 4,596 tourists. Other decreases in tourist departures included Austria, Italy, Sweden, Switzerland, Russia, Libya and the United States.

Purpose of visit
When compared to January 2005, the number of holidaymakers leaving the islands dropped by 6.8 per cent to 39,499, whereas the number of business travellers went up by 5.3 per cent to 6,670.

Accommodation
In the period under review, the number of nights spent by tourists departing by air was estimated at 485,061, a decrease of 13.2 per cent when compared to January 2005.

The number of nights spent in hotels decreased by 11.3 per cent and accounted for 67.9 per cent of total nights spent. Tourists opting for a stay in Gozo reached 1,351 - 2.7 per cent of the total - a decrease of 86 tourists when compared to the same month last year.

Tourism expenditure
In January 2006, expenditure on package tours was estimated at Lm7.4 million, a decrease of Lm1.5 million or 16.6 per cent when compared to January 2005. Non-package tourists spent Lm2.4 million on airfares and Lm1.7 million on accommodation thereby increasing total expenditure on non-package travel by approximately Lm0.5 million or 14.1 per cent.

Other expenditure from both package and non-package tourists altogether increased by Lm0.3 million to Lm6.3 million from Lm6 million in January 2005. Total expenditure decreased by Lm0.6 million or 3.4 per cent.

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