Last year the demand for accommodation services increased

In 2010, a total of 2.4 million domestic and foreign tourists stayed in accommodation establishments. Compared to 2009, the number of foreign tourists increased 13% and the number of domestic tourists 9%. Foreign tourists still accounted for about two thirds of the total number of accommodated tourists and mostly used the services of accommodation establishments of Tallinn. 82% of the foreign tourists who used the services of accommodation establishments arrived from the European Union Member States, of whom nearly two thirds came from Finland. In 2010, 838,000 domestic tourists stayed in accommodation establishments, though more than in 2009, but less than in 2007 and 2008, the record years for domestic tourism of the past decade. 24% of domestic tourists stayed in accommodation establishments of Harju county, 13% of Pärnu county, 11% of Tartu county and 10% of Ida-Viru county.

In December, 177,000 foreign and domestic tourists used the services of accommodation establishments, or 17% more tourists than in December 2009. The number of foreign tourists increased by a fifth. More tourists from neighbouring countries – Finland, Russia, Latvia and Sweden stayed in accommodation establishments, as well as from more distant European countries. Also, more tourists came from African, American and Asian countries, but the share of tourists from these countries in accommodation establishments was small, amounting to slightly less than 1% of the total number of tourists. In December, 66,000 residents of Estonia used the services of accommodation establishments, which was a fifth more than in December 2009. 712 accommodation establishments with 16,200 rooms and 35,600 beds were available for tourists. The room occupancy rate was 37%, which is 7 percentage points more than in December 2009. In December, the average cost of a guest night in an accommodation establishment was 27 euros (428 kroons).