Tourism grew 0.9% in August to a new record. Fires penalise the Centre region
The increase in activity in the tourism sector was due to growth in overnight stays by residents, as there was a slight drop in foreign visitors.
August marked a new record for Portuguese tourism, with year-on-year growth of 0.9% in the number of guests, to 3.8 million, and 1.1% in overnight stays, to 10.7 million, according to flash statistics published on Tuesday by the National Statistics Institute (INE).
This unprecedented figure was due to the growth in overnight stays by residents (+4.1%), as there was a 0.5% decrease in non-residents.
Among the main source markets, the United States stood out with growth of 9.8%, followed by Canada with an increase of 8.5%. The Spanish and Italian markets recorded the largest declines, of 9.1% and 6.9%, respectively.
Total revenue for the sector remained robust, growing by 6.5%, as did room revenue, which increased by 5.5%. Revenue per room grew by 2.6% to 116.8 euros, while revenue per occupied room increased by 4.3% to 159.2 euros. The occupancy rate per bed (66.8%) and per room (73.4%) fell by 1.1 percentage points and 1.2 percentage points, respectively.
Fires penalise the Centre region
The Centre region recorded a 3% decrease in overnight stays, a trend that INE considers “may be associated with the circumstances resulting from the fires that affected the region during that period”.
The Autonomous Region of Madeira (+3.7%) and the Setúbal Peninsula (+3.3%) had the highest growth. The least significant increases were observed in the West and Tagus Valley and in the Algarve (+0.5% in both). “The Algarve accounted for 30.3% of total overnight stays, followed by Greater Lisbon (19.3%)”, notes INE.
With the slowdown in August, growth in overnight stays since the beginning of the year now stands at 2.4%, with a total of 56.5 million. Total revenues remain strong, increasing by 7.9% compared to the same period last year.
