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2023 was a year of strong growth in tourism to Europe. We are finally recovering from the pandemic.
— Dawit Habtemariam
Cyprus, Malta, Albania and other underrated destinations recorded the highest tourist growth rates in Europe last year, according to the latest data from Eurostat.
More than 2.6 billion tourists stayed in hotels and alternative accommodation in Europe from January to October. Of this, international tourism increased by 12.5%.
Below are the destinations with the highest growth rates in the first 10 months of 2023.
Country tourist accommodation growth rate Albania 55.6% Malta 21% Cyprus 20.7% Montenegro 19.4% Iceland 18.1% Slovakia 17.6% Latvia 13.1% Source: Eurostat. Data covers January to October 2023.
A strong year for European tourism
Eurostat estimates that tourists will spend a record 2.9 billion nights in hotels and alternative accommodation in 2023. This is a 1.6% increase over 2.87 billion night nights in 2019.
The United Nations World Tourism Organization has cited U.S. demand as a factor in Europe’s post-pandemic tourism recovery. Domestic tourism growth began to level off last year as Americans traveled to Europe in droves.
“I was in Rome, Venice and Dubrovnik and it really felt like it was 2019,” Intrepid Travel CEO James Thornton told Skift Global in September. -Told in the forum.
A hidden gem that attracts tourists
Some travel companies are expanding travel to lesser-known destinations such as Albania and Montenegro, which have seen the highest growth in tourists, to escape Europe’s busiest destinations.
“We think Montenegro is exciting. “We think it’s a very interesting place to be at the moment,” Thornton said.
Despite the emigration of Russian tourists, Cyprus has also benefited.
