Number of foreign tourists in Portugal grow

The National Statistics Institute in Portugal has reported that in April of this year, there was a 16.5% increase in the number of guests in tourist establishments. This is compared to the same month in the previous year. As a result, the total number of guests reached 2.7 million. Additionally, there was a 13.8% increase in overnight stays, reaching 6.8 million in Portugal’s tourist accommodation sector.

In April 2021, there was a significant increase in visitors and overnight stays compared to the same month in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic. Visitors increased by 17.5%, and overnight stays increased by 14.3%.

According to INE, the Portuguese tourism sector saw 6.8 million overnight stays in April, with 2 million coming from the domestic market (a 7.3% increase) and 4.8 million from the international market (a 16.8% increase). In addition, overnight stays by residents increased by 21.1% compared to April 2019, while non-resident overnight stays increased by 11.6%.

In April, UK residents accounted for 18.1% of non-resident overnight stays in the Portuguese tourism sector, a 9.6% increase from the same month before the pandemic. The Spanish market came in second with 11.9% of non-resident overnight stays and a growth rate of 2.3%. On the other hand, the German market decreased by 2.1% and ended April with a share of 11.4%.

“Among the seventeen main source markets (87.4% of total non-resident overnight stays), only Finland, Belgium, Denmark, and the Netherlands recorded a decrease in overnight stays (-11.5%, -5.9%, -2%, and -0.4%, respectively)” compared to April 2022, highlighted the statistical authority.

INE highlights the growth of the Canadian market in April compared to the same month last year, with an increase of 89.5%, followed by an increase in the North American  market of 54.2%.

Compared to April 2019, the overnight stays of residents increased in all regions, highlighting the Autonomous Region of Madeira (+105.4%). Non-resident overnight stays grown in all regions but less significantly in the Algarve (+1.7%).

The net occupancy rate of bed-places in tourist accommodation establishments rose by 3.3 percentage points to 50.8% in April compared to the same month last year, while the net occupancy rate of rooms rose by 3.9 percentage points to 59.8%.

In the four months of January-April accounts, “the number of overnight stays in Portugal increased by 30%, +16.7% for residents and +37.1% for non-residents. Compared to the same period in 2019, overnight stays grew by 14.2%, +19.9% in residents and +11.8% in non-residents,” the INE said.