10.3.2024 | Estonia

Tourist numbers fall at the start of 2024

Text Mark Taylor
Photo Andrei Chertkov

According to data just released by Statistics Estonia, accommodation establishments in the country served nearly 194,000 tourists in January, which was 1 per cent fewer than in January last year. However, while the number of domestic tourists decreased, the number of foreign tourists increased.

“More than 83,000 foreign and nearly 111,000 domestic tourists were accommodated in Estonia in January. Compared with January 2023, there were 1 per cent more foreign tourists, which is still 35 per cent fewer than in January 2020, just before the crisis. The number of foreign tourists was similar to the number of arrivals in January 2011. The number of domestic tourists was 3 per cent below last January’s all-time record,” explained Helga Laurmaa, a leading analyst at Statistics Estonia.

The highest numbers of foreign visitors in January arrived from Finland (over 24,000) and Latvia (nearly 16,000 people). Compared with January of the previous year, the number of Finnish tourists was 17 per cent lower than in January last year, while the number of Latvian tourists was 14 per cent higher. More tourists also arrived from the United Kingdom, Lithuania, Poland, and Asian countries.

77 per cent of the foreign tourists stayed in accommodation establishments in Harjumaa, followed by Pärnumaa (11 per cent), Tartumaa (6 per cent), and Ida-Virumaa (2 per cent).

The largest share of domestic tourists (33 per cent) were accommodated in Harjumaa, 12 per cent in both Pärnumaa and Tartumaa, and 11 per cent in Ida-Virumaa.

The average cost of a night’s stay in an accommodation establishment in Estonia was 43 euros per person, which was 1 euro cheaper than in January 2023 and 8 euros more than in January 2020, before the crisis. The average cost of an overnight stay per person was 48 euros in Lääne-Virumaa and Tartumaa, 46 euros in Harjumaa, 43 euros in Ida-Virumaa, and 37 euros in Pärnumaa.