The increase in guests in February was 6.5 percent and in overnight stays was 6.2 percent, according to INE, which recorded a rise in the first quarter of this year of 7.7 percent in number of guests and 7.6 percent in overnight stays.
Overnight stays in hotels accounted for 71.9 percent of the total, rising by 11.1 percent in March, with three-star units seeing significant growth (14.5 percent), in line with previous months.
In tourist accommodation, the rise was 22.7 percent, 13.8 percent in tourist apartments and 12.8 percent at inns.
In the March statistics, the rise in overnight stays by Portuguese nationals increased, registering growth of 16.3 percent against 7.9 percent in February, resulting in 1.1 million overnight stays, “a result influenced by the calendar effect of the Easter period, with an impact at the end of the month.”
In terms of foreign markets, the increase was of 8.2 percent (5.5 percent in February) to 2.9 million overnight stays.
In the quarter, overnight stays increased by 10.5 percent for residents and 6.4 percent for non-residents.
INE noted that the Spanish market (12.7 percent of the total), “traditionally sensitive to the ‘Easter effect’” showed significant growth of 75.1 percent, while in the first quarter it grew 30 percent.