The tourism sector in Cyprus recorded a little over a 20% increase in 2023 compared to 2022, marking the second-highest growth in the EU amid the broader recovery of the industry in Europe following the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Eurostat’s initial estimates based on the available data for 2023.
Almost all EU member states reported an increase in overnight stays in tourist accommodations, except for Luxembourg, which experienced a slight decrease (-0.1%).
In Malta and Cyprus, the increase in overnight stays exceeded 20%, while in eight other EU countries, it surpassed 10% (Slovakia, Latvia, Bulgaria, Austria, Czech Republic, Portugal, Romania, and Greece).
The most significant increase in absolute numbers of overnight stays was recorded in Germany (+32.8 million nights) and Spain (+32.3 million nights).
Overall in the EU, the estimates show a total of 2.92 billion overnight stays in tourist accommodations in 2023, a 1.6% increase from 2019, before the pandemic (2.87 billion). According to Eurostat, this marks a record for the hospitality sector in the EU.
In 2023, there were 171 million more overnight stays compared to 2022 (+6.3%), primarily due to an increase in overnight stays by international visitors (+146 million) and, to a lesser extent, an increase in overnight stays by domestic visitors (+25 million). Tourism levels (in terms of overnight stays) were 25% higher than ten years ago (2.33 billion overnight stays in 2013).
After three years during which the share of international tourism was significantly lower (29%, 32%, and 44% of total overnight stays in 2020, 2021, and 2022), in 2023, foreign tourists accounted for 46% of the total 2.87 billion overnight stays. This share indicates a recovery of international tourism almost to pre-pandemic levels (47% in 2019). However, in terms of volume, international tourism remained lower than in 2019 (-0.4%).
Regarding accommodations, hotels and similar establishments were the main category in terms of overnight stays, with 1.8 billion (63% of the total). They were followed by holiday accommodations and other short-stay facilities (24%) and campsites (13%).
