An estimated 171,411 Maltese residents went on holiday abroad in the third quarter this year, 13.2% more than the same period last year.
The National Statistics Office said that during the third quarter, outbound tourist trips towards non-EU countries increased by 44% compared to the same period last year.
Italy and the United Kingdom remained the most popular destinations, with a share of 46.6% of total tourist trips.
Total nights spent by outbound tourists increased by 8.6%, surpassing 1.2 million nights.
Total estimated outlay by resident tourists between July and September increased by 9.4% and stood at €177.6 million, equivalent to an average €1,036 per trip.
A total 412,083 trips left Malta between January and September, an increase of 14.7% over 2016.
Total nights spent abroad went up by 12.4%, surpassing 2.8 million. Total estimated outlay by resident tourists stood at €378.8 million, 10.6 per cent more than that recorded for the same period in 2016.