Albania is witnessing a remarkable surge in tourism this year, setting European records. According to data published by Eurostat, overnight stays in tourist accommodations, including hotels, short-term rentals, camping, and campsites, have seen the highest year-on-year growth in Albania compared to the European average and all European countries with available data for the January-June 2023 period (data not complete for Turkey and Kosovo).

In the first half of 2023, Albania recorded a staggering 44.1% increase in net overnight stays compared to the same period the previous year. This growth far surpassed the European Union’s average of 12.9%.

Following Albania, Cyprus saw a 39.1% increase in net overnight stays for the same period, followed by Montenegro with 37.2%, and Malta with 30.5%.

Albania achieved a total of approximately 1.7 million net overnight stays in January-June 2023, almost equaling Montenegro’s 1.79 million. This is a significant shift from 2019 when Montenegro had nearly double the net overnight stays compared to Albania (1.5 million vs. 806,000), according to Eurostat.

Additionally, data from the Bank of Albania revealed that foreign visitors spent a total of 1.55 billion euros in the first half of 2023. This marks the highest spending recorded since the 1990s, indicating Albania’s resurgence as a preferred tourist destination. Foreign spending on travel increased by 37% compared to the same period the previous year.

Furthermore, data from the Institute of Statistics (INSTAT) showed a 33% increase in the number of foreign nationals entering Albanian territory during January-June 2023, compared to the same period in 2022.

According to the Ministry of Tourism, patriotic tourism, particularly visitors from Kosovo, remains the dominant category, comprising 40% of the total. More than 1.38 million visitors from Kosovo entered Albania in the first six months of the year, marking a 43% increase from the same period the previous year.

Italians ranked second, with 310,000 visitors from the neighboring country, setting a record for the first half of the year. Italians accounted for 9% of the total. The data also indicated that North Macedonia and Montenegro were the third and fourth leading groups of visitors, respectively, continuing their dominant presence over the years.

European Union tourism at its decade-high in the first half of 2023

The European Union’s tourism industry is experiencing a robust recovery from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Eurostat.

In the first half of 2023, the number of overnight stays in tourist accommodation facilities reached the highest level in the last decade, signaling a notable resurgence in the industry’s performance across many countries.

During the first six months of this year, there were 1,193 million overnight stays in tourist accommodation structures, marking an increase of nearly 11 million compared to the same period in 2019. Furthermore, there were 136 million more overnight stays than in the first half of 2022. Compared to 2021 (406.8 million), this year recorded 786 million more overnight stays, and compared to 2020 (474.7 million), there were 718 million more overnight stays.

All months surpassed the figures of the previous year, with the most substantial growth recorded in January (45%) and February (27%).

Data for each country revealed that all EU member states, except Hungary, witnessed an increase in overnight stays compared to 2022. Cyprus (39.3%), Malta (30.5%), and Slovakia (28.7%) registered the most significant increases in overnight stays.

However, approximately half of the countries have not yet reached the figures recorded in the first half of 2019. Notably, Latvia (-23.8%), Slovakia (-16%), Hungary (-12.2%), and Lithuania (-11.7%) experienced declines.

This year’s strong growth in figures resulted from the recovery of international tourism. Compared to 2022, the number of overnight stays by foreign tourists increased by 22.5%, while domestic tourism saw a 5.8% increase.

In total, foreign tourists accounted for 545 million overnight stays in the first half of 2023, constituting 46% of all overnight stays.

In recent years, the percentage of foreign tourists was significantly impacted by the pandemic, dropping from 47% in the first half of 2019 to 36% in the first half of 2020. It further decreased to 21% in 2021 before making a strong comeback in 2022, rising to 42%.