Lies, damn lies, and statistics?

Text Mikko Savikko
Photo Pexels

Compiling statistics and analysing them is a difficult craft. A senior analyst at Statistics Estonia commented on the September accommodation statistics: “Although the highest number of travellers came from Finland, their number decreased by 5% compared to last year.”

According to the Port of Tallinn’s passenger statistics, the number of Finns in September fell by 10.7% compared to the previous year. From January to September, the same statistics show 0.5% more Finnish visitors compared to last year.

So what is going on? Are Finns abandoning Estonia? Perhaps it would be wise to take a look at the calendar. Last September had five weekends, this year only four. Since Finnish tourism is concentrated on weekends, especially outside the holiday season, a 5-percent drop is not significant.

Statistics Estonia, whose figures the media repeat while reporting the disappearance of Finnish tourists, collects its data only from hotels. In recent years, Finns have increasingly used services like Airbnb and Booking.com. They may also be booking accommodation elsewhere. This year, Finns have clearly spent more nights in Estonia outside the abovementioned hotel accommodations.

Visit Pärnu has just published a very good study. It examined Pärnu’s rental market statistics on Airbnb. During the three summer months of 2025, a total of about 30,000 nights were spent there—roughly estimated, at least around 60,000 overnight stays. The nationality of the guests cannot be determined from the study.

According to Statistics Estonia, about 130,000 people stayed in Pärnu city hotels during the same period, which amounted to about 275,000 hotel nights. Of these, 43,200 were Finns, who accounted for 115,278 hotel nights.

The study can be read on Visit Pärnu’s website. It examined only the share of Airbnb. For example, for next June, nearly 200 apartments are available in Pärnu through Booking.com, and more than 200 on Airbnb.

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Accommodation Airbnb Estonian statistics Statistics Statistics Estonia Tourism tourism statistics