Nights spent by guests at Latvia's tourist facilities up 7.9% in nine months

  • 2018-11-15
  • LETA/TBT Staff

RIGA - The number of nights guests spent at Latvia’s hotels and other tourist facilities in the first nine months of 2018 grew by 7.9 percent against the same period last year to 4.274 million, according to the data released today by the Central Statistical Bureau.

The number of nights spent by foreign guests at Latvia’s hotels and other tourist facilities rose by 9.9 percent year-on-year to 2.99 million in the first nine months of 2018, while the nights spent by local tourists grew 3.6 percent to 1.284 million.

During the nine months of 2018, the Latvian hotels and tourist facilities received 2.253 million guests, up 9.6 percent against the first nine months of last year. The number of foreign guests increased by 9.2 percent to 1.549 million and the number of Latvia’s residents staying in the hotels and other tourist facilities rose 10.5 percent to 704,200.

The Central Statistical Bureau reported that 1.03 million visitors stayed at Latvian tourist accommodation establishments in the third quarter of 2018, which is 6.5 percent more than in the third quarter of 2017. Compared to corresponding period of the previous year, the number of nights spent by visitors increased by 5.3 percent, reaching 1.95 million. The average length of stay comprised two nights.

Over the third quarter of 2018, 706,400 foreign visitors were hosted, which is 7.2 percent more than in the third quarter of the previous year, whereas the number of nights spent by them increased by 8.3 percent, reaching 1.37 million nights. The majority of foreign visitors came from Germany (99,800), Russia (80,400), Lithuania (70,300), Estonia (53,500), Finland (45,900) and the United Kingdom (33,800).

In the third quarter of 2018, significant increase was observed in the number of visitors coming from Israel (33.2 percent), Japan (28.1 percent), Ukraine (24.6 percent), France (23.3 percent), Netherlands (23 percent), the United Kingdom (15.6 percent), Poland (15.3 percent) and Italy (10.4 percent). A drop was observed in the number of visitors coming from Canada (13.1 percent), China (12.5 percent), Finland (5.6 percent) and Lithuania (2.3 percent).

Out of the total number of foreign visitors, 30.4 percent or 214,800 came from the neighboring countries of Latvia – Russia (11.4 percent), Lithuania (10 percent), Estonia (7.6 percent) and Belarus (1.5 percent).

Out of all foreign visitors, majority (69.8 percent) stayed in Riga, 10.5 percent – in Jurmala, 2.3 percent – in Ventspils, 2.3 percent – in Liepaja, 2.2 percent – in Sigulda county.

In the third quarter of 2018, 320,500 Latvian visitors were hosted at tourist accommodation establishments – 5 percent more than during the third quarter of 2017, but the number of nights spent decreased by 1.2 percent and comprised 587,800.

Latvian residents stayed mostly in Riga (19.2 percent of visitors), Liepaja (6.3 percent), Jurmala (5.3 percent), Engure county (3.7 percent), Daugavpils (3.5 percent) and Ventspils (3.3 percent).

Over the third quarter of 2018, 554,500 visitors were hosted at tourist accommodation establishments in Riga – 6.7 percent more than during the third quarter of the previous year. The number of foreign visitors in Riga rose by 5.2 percent, amounting to 493,000. The majority of foreign visitors hosted in Riga came from Germany (14.7 percent), Russia (8.1 percent), Finland (7.1 percent), the United Kingdom (5.9 percent), Estonia (5.8 percent) and Lithuania (5.1 percent).