The number of tourist arrivals in March increased by 3.5% to reach 172,971 when compared to the same month in 2018.

The National Statistics Office said 145,814 came for a holiday, while 16,748 came on business.

Arrivals from non-EU states went up by 21.4% to 27,742 when compared to the same month in 2018.

Most tourists (38%) were aged between 25 and 44, followed by those within the 45-64 age bracket (33.8%).

The number of total nights they spent in Malta went up by 2.2% when compared to March 2018, surpassing 1.1 million nights.

Total tourist expenditure was estimated at €116.5 million, an increase of 0.5% over the same month in 2018.

January-March 2019

Arrivals for the first three months of 2019 amounted to 425,892, an increase of 2.8% over the same period in 2018. The total number of nights they spent in Malta went up by 4.2%, reaching nearly 2.8 million nights.

Total tourism expenditure was estimated at €272.4 million, 0.3% more than that recorded for 2018. Total expenditure per capita stood at €640, 2.3% less than in 2018.