Number of foreign tourists in accommodation establishments increased
According to Statistics Estonia, in August 2022, Estonian accommodation establishments served nearly 420,000 tourists, which is 23% more than in August last year. The number of foreign tourists* increased and the number of domestic tourists fell.
Helga Laurmaa, analyst at Statistics Estonia, said that nearly 189,000 foreign and 231,000 domestic tourists were accommodated in Estonia. „There were 94% more foreign tourists than in August 2021. However, the number of foreign tourists was still 34% smaller than in August 2019 before the pandemic. Domestic tourist numbers have grown rapidly in recent years, but in August 2022, the number of domestic tourists was 6% lower than in August last year, although 15% higher than in August 2019 before the crisis,“ added Laurmaa.
Compared with August 2021, there was an increase in the number of tourists from European countries as well as from countries outside of Europe. The largest share of foreign visitors to Estonia came from Finland (36% of all foreign tourists), followed by Latvia (13% of foreign tourists). The number of tourists from these neighbouring countries travelling to Estonia was respectively 223% and 62% higher than in August last year. Tourist arrivals from Finland did not reach pre-pandemic levels, while the number of Latvian tourists was up 9%.
67% of the foreign tourists were accommodated in Harju county, followed by Pärnu (13%), Tartu (6%), and Saare county (5%). Foreign tourists spent a total of 370,000 nights in Estonia.
For 74% of domestic tourists, the purpose of their trip was holiday, and 19% were on business trips. The largest share of domestic tourists (21%) was accommodated in Harju county, 17% in Pärnu county and 9% each in Ida-Viru, Saare, and Tartu counties. Domestic tourists spent a total of 406,000 nights in accommodation establishments.
In August, 1,223 accommodation establishments served visitors – this is 11 more than in July. There were 24,000 rooms and 56,000 bed places available for guests. The room occupancy rate was 55%. The average cost of a guest night was 42 euros per person, which is one euro less than in July. The average cost of an overnight stay per person was 48 euros in Harju county, 44 euros in Tartu county, 43 euros in Pärnu county, 39 euros in Ida-Viru county, and 37 euros in Saare county.
* The number of foreign tourists does not include refugees from Ukraine.
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
For further information
Helen Maria Raadik
Media Relations Manager
Marketing and Dissemination Department
Statistics Estonia
Tel +372 625 9191
press [at] stat.ee