According to a press release by Statistics Estonia, a total of more than 3 million domestic and foreign tourists stayed at accommodation establishments in Estonia in 2016, representing a 7 percent increase over 2015.
In 2016, 1.3 million domestic and 2 million foreign tourists used the services of accommodation establishments in Estonia. Compared to 2015, the number of both foreign and domestic tourists increased 7 percent.
Of the foreign tourists to use these services, 46 percent arrived from Finland, 10 percent from Russia and 7 percent from Latvia, representing a year over year increase of 5, 8 and 11 percent, respectively. 2016 also saw an increase in the number of accommodated tourists from Germany, Sweden and Lithuania, while the number of tourists arriving from Asian countries increased throughout the year as well.
73 percent of foreign tourists accommodated came to Estonia on vacation and 21 percent on business trips while the remainder had some other reason for visiting Estonia. 62 percent of domestic tourists were on vacation while 23 percent were traveling for business.
In December 2016, 255,000 domestic and foreign tourists stayed in accommodation establishments, which is 9 percent more than in December 2015. Of these, 151,000 were foreign tourists, an 11-percent increase over December 2015, with more tourists visiting Estonia from neighboring countries and other major tourism partners, including Germany, Lithuania, the U.K. and Asian countries. 104,000, or 41 percent of customers of accommodation establishments, were domestic tourists, representing an 8-percent increase year over year.
In December, 908 accommodation establishments offered services for tourists, including 19,000 rooms and a total of 43,000 beds; 42 percent of rooms and 34 percent of beds were occupied. The average cost of one night of accommodation per guest was €37, remaining at December 2015 levels.
Source: ERR NEWS Number of tourists to stay in Estonia increased 7 percent in 2016