Increase in number of Maltese travelling abroad

During the first seven months of the year, the number of Maltese passengers departing by air and sea amounted to 136,723, an increase of 7.9 per cent over the same period a year ago, the National Statistics Office said yesterday.

In the period under review, the most frequent destination was Italy, accounting for 31.6 per cent of the total number of Maltese travelling abroad by air and sea.

The greatest proportion of outbound passengers - 46.4 per cent - were passengers aged between 25 and 44, followed by those in the 45 - 64 age bracket.

Maltese passengers during July reached a total of 31,309. Of these, 25,589 travelled by air, an increase of 4.6 per cent when compared to the same month last year.

In July, outbound passengers increased by nine per cent to a total of 31,309. Over 55 per cent of the increase was attributable to departures by sea (catamaran), the majority being same-day visitors.