144,000 Maltese holidayed abroad last summer

More than 144,000 Maltese tourists went on holiday to a foreign country between July and September last summer, national statistics show. This is an increase of 9% Maltese tourists when compared with the same period in 2013. The most popular destinations were Italy (41,045 visitors), the United Kingdom (23,223 tourists) and France (2,898 tourists). 3,753 of these were cruise liner passengers while 11,040 were same-day visitors.

This is a registered increase of 6.5% when compared with the same period in 2013.

In total, Maltese tourists spent over a million nights abroad between July and September 2014, spending a combined total of over €141 million. This is a registered increase of 4% and 4.5% respectively when compared with the same period last year.

“The number of Maltese people who holidayed abroad last summer increased by 8% when compared to the summer of 2013,” Tourism Minister Edward Zammit Lewis said. “This is a confirmation that Maltese people have more money in their wallets and are feeling more comfortable spending it.”

Zammit Lewis attributed these results to Malta’s recent economic growth thanks to results that the government has registered thanks to incentives taken in Budget 2014.

“All this bodes well for local tourism business,” Zammit Lewis said. “If their business improves, it will mean more investment and job creation, that will give positive results to our economic growth, increase in consumption and decrease in unemployment.”