Press Releases

Tourist Arrivals +4,0%

On the basis of the results of the Passengers Survey, arrivals of tourists reached 105.571 in February 2019 compared to 101.481 in February 2018, recording an increase of 4,0%. February 2019 had the highest volume of tourist arrivals ever recorded in Cyprus during the specific month.

For the period of January - February 2019 arrivals of tourists totaled 187.541 compared to 177.348 in the corresponding period of 2018, recording an increase of 5,7% and outnumbering the total arrivals ever recorded in Cyprus during the first two months of the year (Table 1).

Analysis of changes

Tourist arrivals from the United Kingdom increased by 3,9% in February 2019 compared to February 2018 while tourist arrivals from Greece remained at the same level as last year. Contrary to that, a decrease of 22,7% in tourist arrivals from Russia, 13,4% decrease from Israel and 10,5% decrease from Germany were recorded. Percentage changes from one year to the next for the main countries of usual residence of tourists are presented in Table 1.

Main countries

The United Kingdom constitutes the main source of tourism for Cyprus for February 2019, with a proportion of 35,1% while arrivals from Greece comprise 11,4% of total arrivals, from Russia 8,8% and from Israel 7,5% (Table 2).

Purpose of visit

For a percentage of 59,0% of tourists, the purpose of their trip in February 2019 was holidays, for 22,0% visit to friends and relatives and for 18,6% business (Table 3).

METHODOLOGICAL NOTES

Definitions

Tourists – Visitors who stay for at least one night in Cyprus.

Tourist arrivals – The term refers to the number of trips and not to the number of persons. This differs in the sense that one person can take more than one trips during the reference period.

Source of data and coverage

The data are obtained from the Passengers Survey which is conducted in the arrivals and departures halls in the airports of Larnaka and Pafos, as well as from administrative sources such as the monthly arrivals at ports.

The survey covers all persons who pass through passport control at the ports and airports in the Government controlled area of Cyprus. It does not include travelers who arrive and depart illegally via ports and airports in the occupied part of Cyprus.

The weighting of data is conducted based on the data sent to the Statistical Service by the Civil Aviation Department and from the ship manifests, as well as data sent by the Analysis and Statistics Office of the Cyprus Police.

For more information:

Statistical Service (CYSTAT) Website, subtheme Tourism

Contact

Lucy Panayidou: Tel.:+35722602152, E-mail: lpanagidou@cystat.mof.gov.cy

(MG)