Just 10,291 tourists visited Malta in March as COVID-19 continued to take its toll on the country and the rest of the world.

The National Statistics Office said on Thursday this was a drop of 86.3% when compared to the same month in 2020, the month when the first case of COVID-19 was recorded in Malta.

A total of 6,538 people visited for a holiday and 2,705 for business reasons. Most - 48.9% - were aged between 25 and 44 years. They were followed by those within the 45-64 age bracket (27%).

Although a general increase in the average length of stay was recorded, total nights spent went down by 65.2%, totalling 153,672.

The largest share of guest nights (59%) was spent in rented accommodation establishments.

Total tourist expenditure was estimated at €10.4 million, a decrease of 76.1% over the corresponding month in 2020.

Italian residents comprised 32.7% per cent of tourists.

January-March 2021

Arrivals in the first three months amounted to 33,249, a decrease of 91% over the same period in 2020. 

Total nights spentin Malta decreased by 79.6%, totalling 457,822 nights.

Total tourism expenditure was estimated at €30.5 million, a decrease of 86.4% per cent when compared to the same period in the previous year. Total expenditure per capita stood at €916, increasing from €607 in the same period in 2020, mainly as a result of longer length of stays.