More than two out of every three tourists who visited Malta in July were aged under 44, official figures released on Tuesday show. 

Tourist numbers were up by 5.4 per cent during that month when compared to the same month in 2018, with arrivals from non-EU countries up by 9.9 per cent. In total, 305,588 tourists visited the country, with 275,667 of those trips being for holiday purposes. 

More than 68 per cent were aged under 44, with 38.4 per cent aged between 25 and 44. 

The figures were released by the National Statistics Office. 

Although tourist numbers rose by more than 5 per cent, tourist spending did not rise as quickly. Tourists in July spent an estimated €285m in Malta – a 1.8 per cent increase over the same month in 2018.

January-July 2019

Tourist spending was up by a higher percentage when the first six months of the year were taken into account, rising by 4.3 per cent to €1.2 billion.

When spending was calculated on a per capita basis, it remained at the same level as in 2018, at an estimated €773 per capita. 

Inbound tourist trips for the first seven months of 2019 amounted to 1,512,388 an increase of 4.2 per cent over the same period in 2018. Total nights spent by inbound tourists went up by 2.2 per cent, reaching almost 10.3 million nights.

The Tourism Ministry welcomed the figures and said they were confirmation that government initiatives to expand air routes and introduce new local events to draw visitors were bearing fruit.