Commenting on the decline number of tourists to Malta, local travel guide YourMalta said that should tourists from the United Kingdom, German and French markets decline further the island will become less and less attractive to the tour operators to promote.
Speaking to Presse Mitteilung, the travel guide further added that had there not been an increase in the number of Italian tourists visiting Malta, the outlook for the sector on the island would have been more grim.
This is bad news for the Maltese tourism scene, especially after Maltese tourism figures dwindled by 4.6% in June 2006 in a year-by-year comparison issued by the National Statistics Office (NSO). In turn, between January and June 2006 tourism registered a decrease of 2.4% over the comparable period last year.
The Maltese tourism scene could suffer even more if, as forecast by British survey by AC Nielsen, Maltese tourist packages from Britain will indeed be the third most expensive in the region by 2007, tempting holiday makers to spend their vacation in Spain, Portugal and Greece as a cheaper alternative.
Earlier this year, rumours were rife that one major UK tour operator was considering pulling Malta out of its holiday brochures, a move which could have had a chain reaction on other operators, however these rumours have not yet actualized, according to Presse Mitteilung.
The Malta travel guide also commented on the delay in the introduction of low cost airlines to Malta and the possibility from that of an increase in tourist numbers.
Earlier this year, YourMalta also commented on the delay in the introduction of low cost airlines to Malta adding that ‘potentially millions in lost revenue will be lost this year because of delays in agreeing to allow the low cost airlines to fly into Malta.’
See also:
Malta to have third most costly tourist packages
By MaltaMedia News
Aug 17, 2006, 10:15 CET
Inbound tourism decreases
By MaltaMedia News
Jul 31, 2006, 12:53 CET
Holiday industry awaits low-cost airlines
By MaltaMedia News
Jul 24, 2006, 09:07 CET
