Total cruise passenger traffic increased by 15 per cent in the fourth quarter last year, when compared with the same period the previous year, the National Statistics Office said.

It said there were 88 cruise liner calls during the period, 12 less than in the previous year. At 94.7 per cent, transit passengers accounted for the vast majority of total traffic, reaching 166,989.

Around 2,226 passengers visited Gozo, while 5,308 passengers spent at least one night on board their berthed cruise liner.

Visitors from EU states comprised 74.5 per cent of total traffic, the major markets being Italy, Germany and France. The total number of passengers from non-EU countries stood at 44,965, of whom 26.9 per cent came from the United States.

Total cruise passengers for 2015 stood at 600,156, a rise of 27.3 per cent over 2014. Of these, 75.8 per cent came from EU states.

There were 307 cruise liner calls in 2015, with an average 1,955 passengers per vessel, compared to 303 calls and an average 1,556 passengers per vessel in 2014.