Over 1.6 million foreign tourists visited Estonia in the second quarter of 2016, which is 4% more than at the same time a year earlier. Although the amount of tourists from Finland, whose visits make up a third of all visits, decreased by 1% compared to last year, the number of visits made by European Union citizens grew by 2% in a year. The number of visits made from Spain and Portugal, for example, increased by more than a quarter. Russian citizens came to Estonia on 200,000 occasions and that figure stayed the same as last year. The number of visits from Asian countries continued to grow, with 15% more visits taking place in the second quarter of this year than a year ago. Visits from the USA and Norway have also become more frequent, while visits from Turkey and Belarus have decreased in number.

The number of overnight visits grew by 6% in the second quarter compared to the same time last year, and the average length of an overnight visit was four days. 48% of all visits were same-day trips. Foreign tourists spent an estimated 390 million euros in Estonia in the second quarter, which is 5% more than in the second quarter of 2015.

Estonian residents made almost 950,000 trips to foreign countries in the second quarter, which was 1% more than a year earlier¹. Estonian residents visited all neighbouring countries slightly more often than in the second quarter of last year, but the number of trips made to Belgium, France and Italy fell by more than 10%.

The holiday destination preferences of Estonian people have changed: the number of trips to Turkey fell by one third, while visits to Greece, Bulgaria and Croatia became significantly more frequent.

The number of overnight visits remained the same, and the average length of one such visit was 3.6 days. Same-day trips accounted for 15% of the total, and they increased in number by 6%.

Estonian tourists spent an estimated 185 million euros abroad in the second quarter.

¹ The number of trips abroad and the number of foreign countries visited are not the same, as one trip abroad may include visits to several different countries.

The movement of travellers has a noticeable effect on the export and import of travel services in the Estonian balance of payments, which will be published on 8 September.

International travel statistics

For further information:
Tarass Snitsarenko
Eesti Pank Statistics Department
Telephone: +372 668 0906
Email: [email protected]