The number of foreign tourists rose in April, but there were fewer domestic tourists

Helga Laurmaa, leading analyst at Statistics Estonia, said that there were more foreign tourists accommodated in Estonia in April than in the same month last year. “The number of foreign tourists was still 19% smaller than in April 2019 before the pandemic. However, compared with April 2022, the number of foreign tourists increased by nearly a fifth (19%),” explained Laurmaa. For the first time in 2023, the number of domestic tourists decreased – it was down 5% in April year on year. On the other hand, there were 17% more domestic tourists than in April 2019.

Compared with April 2022, there were more tourists from many European countries as well as from countries outside of Europe. 58,000 tourists from Finland and 19,000 tourists from Latvia were accommodated. The number of arrivals from both countries was higher than in April last year. Compared with April 2022, there were also more accommodated tourists from Germany, Lithuania, the United Kingdom, Sweden, the USA, Poland, and Asian countries. 72% of the foreign tourists were on holiday and 21% were travelling on business. 75% of the foreign tourists stayed in accommodation establishments in Harju county, followed by Pärnu (11%), Tartu (6%) and Saare (2%) counties. Lääne-Viru, Ida-Viru, Lääne, Valga, Viljandi and Võru counties each accommodated 1% of the foreign tourists. Foreign tourists spent a total of 256,000 nights in Estonia.

In the case of domestic tourists, 68% were on holiday and 23% were on business trips. The largest share of domestic tourists (33%) was accommodated in Harju county, 13% in Pärnu county, 11% in Tartu county, and 10% in Ida-Viru county. 7% of domestic tourists stayed overnight in Saare county, 6% in Lääne-Viru county, 5% in Lääne county, and 5% in Valga county. Domestic tourists spent a total of 207,000 nights in accommodation establishments.

In April, 936 accommodation establishments served visitors in Estonia. There were 21,000 rooms and 48,000 bed places available for guests. The room occupancy rate was 43%. The average cost of a guest night was 45 euros per person, which is 5 euros more than in April 2022 and 8 euros more than in April 2019. The average cost of a guest night increased by 11% year on year. The average cost of an overnight stay per person was 53 euros in Tartu county, 51 euros in Lääne-Viru county, 47 euros in Harju county, 44 euros in Ida-Viru county, and 38 euros in Pärnu and Saare counties. The average cost of overnight accommodation grew in most counties.

Statistics Estonia collects and analyses accommodation data for the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications with the aim to determine the economic situation in Estonia.

See also the dedicated section on tourism, accommodation and food service and the tourism industry dashboard.

More detailed data have been published in the statistical database.

When using Statistics Estonia’s data and graphs, please indicate the source.

For further information:

Helen Maria Raadik
Media Relations Manager
Marketing and Dissemination Department
Statistics Estonia
Tel +372 625 9181

press [at] stat.ee