In September, there was a significant rise in the number of tourists from Asia

Text Mark Taylor
Photo Andrei Chertkov

According to Statistics Estonia, nearly 274,000 tourists stayed in accommodation establishments in the country in September 2023, which was 5 per cent more than in September last year, but 36 per cent less than in August this year. Compared with September 2022, there were more foreign as well as domestic tourists.

“138,000 foreign tourists were accommodated in Estonia in September. There were 7 per cent more foreign tourists accommodated than in September last year, but the number of foreign tourists did not yet reach the pre-pandemic level and was more than a fourth (27 per cent) smaller than in September 2019,” explained Helga Laurmaa, a leading analyst at Statistics Estonia.

A total of 136,000 domestic tourists stayed in accommodation establishments in September. This was not just 4 per cent more than in September last year, but 29 per cent more than in September 2019 before the pandemic.

As usual, the biggest number of accommodated tourists arrived from Finland, accounting for 35 per cent of foreign tourists. Finland was followed by Latvia (13 per cent), Germany (6 per cent), Lithuania (5 per cent), the USA (4 per cent), and the United Kingdom (4 per cent).

Compared with September 2022, there were more accommodated tourists from many European countries as well as from countries further away. The number of Finnish tourists increased by 2 per cent, Latvian tourists by 12 per cent, and Lithuanian tourists by 32 per cent. Compared with September last year, there were more accommodated tourists from Germany, the United Kingdom, the USA, Sweden, and Poland too. There were also 90% more tourists from Asian countries than in September last year, but their number represented just 30 per cent of the pre-crisis level.

74 per cent of the foreign tourists stayed in accommodation establishments in Harjumaa, followed by Pärnumaa (10 per cent), Tartumaa (6 per cent), and Saaremaa (3 per cent).

The average cost of a night at an accommodation establishment in Estonia during the month was 48 euros per person, which was 3 euros more than in September 2022 and 8 euros more than in September 2019. The average cost of an overnight stay per person was 53 euros in Harjumaa, 49 euros in Tartumaa, 48 euros in Lääne-Viruma, and 43 euros in Saaremaa.

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Domestic Tourists Foreign Tourists Harjumaa Pärnumaa Tallinn Tourism Tourism Estonia