The number of outbound tourists during February stood at 18,121, an increase of 4.2 per cent over the corresponding month last year.

Same day visitors amounted to 1,193.

The National Statistics Office said that outbound trips to EU destinations amounted to 15,849, while the number of Non-EU trips stood at 2,272. Trips towards EU destinations increased by 943, mainly brought about by an increase in the British and German markets.

Despite a decline of 217 trips, Italy remained the most favourite destination among Maltese residents. Trips to Non-EU countries went down by nine per cent when compared to February 2010.

The majority of outbound trips were carried out by males and stood at 11,090, or 61 per cent of the total. Most of these tourists fell within the 25-44 age bracket (8,561), followed by the 45-64 age-group (5,350).

Outbound tourists throughout this two-month period were estimated at 38,640, up by 11 per cent over last year.

Trips to EU countries stood at 33,052 with the most visited countries being

the UK and Italy. Trips to Non-EU destinations dropped slightly and were calculated at 5,588.

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:
Please select at least one mailing list.

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.