There was a silver lining to the volcanic ash cloud in terms of tourism last April.

While it pushed tourist arrivals in Malta down by one per cent over the same month last year, the number of guest nights spent here grew five per cent as stranded holiday makers needed places to stay.

Official statistics show that the total number of guest nights increased by five per cent although this was mainly in private accommodation. Hotels saw a drop of one per cent in guest nights.

Tourist expenditure was also up on April 2009, from just under €76 million to nearly €78 million.

The ash in the sky also transferred tourist traffic to the sea as flights were cancelled, with seafarers reaching 3,097, significantly higher than the 1,285 in April 2009.

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