The number of foreign tourists grew in June

Text Mark Taylor
Photo Andrei Chertkov

According to data released by Statistics Estonia, 337,000 tourists stayed in accommodation establishments the country in June 2023, which was the same as in June last year. Although the number of foreign tourists increased as in May, the number of domestic tourists decreased.

“Nearly 163,000 foreign tourists were accommodated in Estonia in June. Foreign arrivals did not yet reach the pre-crisis level of June 2019, remaining a third lower, but compared with June 2022, the number of foreign tourists increased by 9 per cent,” said Helga Laurmaa, a leading analyst at Statistics Estonia.

Despite a rise in the number of foreign tourists, the number of domestic tourists fell for the third month in a row, down 5 per cent in April, 6 per cent in May, and 7 per cent in June, compared with the corresponding month last year. However, there were 14 per cent more domestic tourists than in June 2019.

The largest share of foreign tourists in Estonian accommodation establishments again arrived from Finland (43 per cent). This was followed by Latvia, Germany, Lithuania, the United Kingdom, United States, Poland, Sweden, and Asian countries. The number of Finnish tourists was up by 17 per cent, German tourists by 8 per cent, and Lithuanian tourists by 10 per cent. More tourists than a year earlier also arrived from the UK, the US, Poland, and Sweden. The number of tourists arriving from Asia doubled, but still remained several times below pre-pandemic levels. The number of arrivals from Latvia, however, was down by 9 per cent compared with June last year.

68 per cent of foreign tourists stayed in accommodation establishments in Harjumaa, followed by Pärnumaa (13 per cent), Tartumaa (7 per cent), Saaremaa (4 per cent), and Ida-Virumaa (2 per cent).

The largest share of domestic tourists, nearly a quarter, was accommodated in Harjumaa, Pärnumaa (16 per cent), Ida-Virumaa (10 per cent), and Saaremaa and Tartumaa (8 per cent).

The average cost of a guest night was 47 euros per person, which is 6 euros more than in June 2022 and 17 euros more than in June 2019. The average cost of a guest night increased by 15 per cent year on year. The average cost of an overnight stay per person was 55 euros in Harjumaa, 49 euros in Pärnumaa, 46 euros in Lääne-Virumaa, 44 euros in Tartumaa, 43 euros in Ida-Virumaa, and 33 euros in Saaremaa.

To learn more about this and similar topics
Domestic Tourists Finland Foreign Tourists Harjumaa Latvia Pärnumaa Tourism