Tourism is Growing in Lisbon

Tourism in Lisbon in 2017 reveals a bigger growth than in 2016

The tourism sector continues to grow in Lisbon. Both the hotel occupancy rate and the average price per room increased in the capital. This increase is also accompanied by a record number of tourists arriving at Portela Airport and the port of Lisbon. If this trend continues, Portugal is likely to record the best year ever in tourism.

If 2016 has already been a record year, the first few months of 2017 show even greater growth. Portugal received by April more than 5,3 million tourists, which represents an increase of 10.9% over the last year. Hotel revenues amounted to 714.8 million euros, an increase of 18.7%, according to data released by the National Statistics Institute (INE).

The average stay was 2.70 nights and increased 2.5%, with more notable growth in the center (6.9%) and Algarve (5.9%). Lisbon did not escape this trend, having increased by 2.1%. As for the net rate of bed occupancy (53.8%) showed an increase of 8.9 percentage points and increased in all regions. The highest occupancy rates correspond to Madeira (74%) and in the metropolitan area of Lisbon (66.3%).

Most of the tourists come from the UK, which accounts for 21.3% of total overnight stays by non-residents. This is equivalent to an increase of 12.7% in April, higher than in the first four months of the year, which stood at 8.1%. Tourists that come from Germany corresponds to 14.6% of the total, an increase of 20.5% in April, showing a growth of 10.7% in the first four months of the year.

The Spanish tourists, who usually visit the country at Easter, represent 11.8% of the total, showing a growth of 102.5%. The number of French tourists also shows a growth, but more modest. The overnight stays of French residents, 10.5% of the total, decelerated, but still recorded a 2% increase, after more significant increases in the first months of the year.

Source: Jornal Sol