January tourism up 2.4 per cent

Tourism was up 2.4 per cent in January over the same month last year, according to departure figures compiled by the National Statistics Office.

Departures by air and sea in January are estimated at 51,736, the NSO said yesterday.

The positive figures follow improved results for November and December over the same months last year. The latest upswing should be welcomed by the industry after a four per cent drop in tourism for the whole of 2006 compared to 2005.

Total tourist expenditure was also estimated to have risen, by 3.9 per cent to Lm18.5 million for the month. The NSO said this increase was underpinned by higher package expenditure and other spending.

The increase in the number of tourists stemmed primarily from a rise in holiday makers from Italy and Scandinavia, while those from France declined.

There was an increase in the number of tourists staying in "collective accommodation establishments" and a drop in the number using private accommodation was registered.

Mainly because of shorter stays in private accommodation, the figures show a nine per cent drop in total nights spent. On the other hand, nights spent in hotel accommodation increased by 2.8 per cent.

Overall, the average length of stay decreased by 1.1 nights to 8.6 nights when compared to the same month last year.