Malta sees surge in tourist numbers and spending in first half of 2025, with Gozo emerging as key destination

Jul 14, 2025

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Tourism in Malta continued to show strong momentum during May 2025, with key performance indicators pointing to sustained recovery and growth across the sector. According to a report by the National Statistics Office (NSO), a total of 347,317 inbound tourists arrived for holiday purposes during the month under review, while 17,910 visited for business-related travel. The most represented age group among visitors was the 25 to 44 cohort, accounting for 36.3% of arrivals, followed closely by those aged 45 to 64 (31.9%).

British, Italian, and French nationals remained Malta’s leading source markets, making up nearly 45% of total tourist arrivals. This concentration highlights both the strength of traditional markets and the importance of maintaining connectivity and targeted marketing in these regions.

Accommodation trends also revealed interesting patterns. Rented establishments – including hotels, private rentals, and short-let apartments – continued to dominate, accounting for 90.7% of all guest nights. The average stay stood at 5.9 nights, contributing to a total of over 2.2 million guest nights in May alone, an 8.6% increase compared to May 2024.

Perhaps more notably, tourist spending surged to nearly €363.6 million, a year-on-year increase of 16.9%. With average nightly expenditure reaching €165, this signals both increased tourism volume and stronger per capita spending – factors that bode well for economic impact beyond the hospitality sector.

Gozo and Comino are also emerging as increasingly popular destinations. In May alone, 222,002 tourists – representing 59.3% of all arrivals – visited the sister islands, either for day trips or overnight stays. This reinforces the growing appeal of Malta’s secondary destinations, which could relieve some pressure from the main island while diversifying the tourism offering.

Zooming out to the broader January-May 2025 period, inbound tourist numbers hit 1,418,954, a 14.3% rise over the same period in 2024. Tourist nights climbed to nearly 8.2 million, up by 14.7%, and total tourist expenditure soared to €1.17 billion – a 21.9% increase year-on-year. Notably, per capita spending rose from €772 to €823, indicating that Malta is attracting not just more tourists, but tourists willing to spend more.

While these figures are encouraging from an economic standpoint, the sheer volume of visitors is increasingly raising concerns about overpopulation, particularly during peak months. Local communities, especially in Gozo, are beginning to feel the strain on infrastructure, resources, and the natural environment. Questions around sustainable tourism, carrying capacity, and long-term planning are becoming ever more urgent.