The number of people staying in tourist accommodation in Malta dropped by almost 100 per cent during the three months the island spent in virtual shutdown.

From April 1 to June 30, there were 17,151 guests in hotels, guesthouses and tourist villages - a drop of 97 per cent on the previous year.

They stayed for 64,161 nights, which represents a 97.7 per cent reduction. 

Malta’s airport closed in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It started to reopen gradually from July 1.

The largest share of guest nights was reported in 4-star hotels and 3-star hotels.

While the drop in tourist stays was dramatic across the island, Gozo was slightly less badly affected. 

On a regional level, total guests in Malta numbered 13,674, down by 97.5 per cent over the second quarter of 2019. In Gozo and Comino, the total guests decreased by 87.7 percent to 3,477.

Total guests in the first six months of 2020 amounted to 321,723, a decrease of 66 per cent over the same period in 2019. Total nights spent went down by 68.7 per cent, reaching nearly 1.4 million. The net use of bed-places declined by 30.3 percentage points to 30.7%.