A total of just over 251,000 tourists, both foreign and domestic, were accommodated in October, the agency goes on, while numbers of both categories were down compared with October 2022.

The number also fell between September and October this year, by 8 percent, though this is more to be expected due to the season.

Leading analyst at Statistics Estonia Helga Laurmaa said that 124,000 foreign tourists were accommodated in Estonia in the month of October.

"Compared with October last year, 5 percent fewer foreign tourists stayed in accommodation establishments, while the number of foreign tourists was more than a quarter (at 28 percent) below the pre-crisis level seen in October 2019," Laurmaa said.

Domestic tourism fell even more on year to October 2023, by 9 percent, to 127,000 people accommodated.

On the other hand, this figure is still 9 percent higher than posted in the last pre-pandemic October, in 2019, a reflection of the continued tendency for more tourism and overnight stays on the part of Estonian citizens and residents, inside Estonia itself.

Foreign tourism in Estonia in October 2023: Quick facts (Source: Statistics Estonia).

• Foreign tourists spent nearly 264,000 nights in total in Estonia.
• Seventy-three percent of the foreign tourists said they were on holiday, while 20 percent were traveling on business.
• Finland, accounting for 43 percent of foreign tourists, represented the largest contingent by nationality, even as overall numbers had fallen, followed by Latvia at 16 percent, Germany (5 percent) and Lithuania (4 percent).
• A greater number of tourists from many European countries, as well as from countries further away, were seen than in October 2022.
• The number of tourists from Lithuania rose by 6 percent, and from Latvia by 3 percent. German tourism numbers rose by as much as 10 percent, while a 51 percent-rise in tourist numbers from Asian countries was reported.
• Fewer tourists from Poland and Sweden were hosted in Estonia, compared with October 2022.
• Three-quarters of foreign tourists stayed in accommodation establishments in Harju County, including Tallinn, the most populous part of the country.
• Eleven percent stayed in Pärnu, Estonia's summer capital, and 6 percent were hosted in Tartu, Estonia's second city. Two percent of tourists stayed in Ida-Viru County, while Saaremaa, Lääne, Lääne-Viru, Valga and Võru counties each accommodated 1 percent of the foreign tourist total.

Domestic tourism in Estonia in October 2023: Quick facts (Source: Statistics Estonia)

• Domestic tourists, ie. Estonian citizens and residents, spent a total of 214,000 nights in accommodation establishments inside Estonia.
• Sixty-seven percent said they were on vacation, with the remaining 23 percent on business trips.
• Again, Harju County accommodated the largest proportion, albeit not the majority (a third of the total), while Pärnu County (13 percent of the total), Tartu County (12 percent) and Ida-Viru County (11 percent) all posted significant numbers.

Accommodation in Estonia in October 2023 Quick Facts (Source: Statistics Estonia)

• In October, 979 accommodation establishments served visitors in Estonia (117 fewer than in September 2023).
• There were 21,000 rooms and nearly 50,000 bed places available for guests.
• The room occupancy rate stood at 44 percent.
• The average cost of a guest night was €45 per person, one euro more than the average for October 2022 and €7 higher than in October 2019.
• The average cost of a guest night rose by 2 percent on year.
• By region, Harju and Lääne-Viru counties were the costliest for stays, at €48 per person, per night, closely followed by €46 per night in Tartu County, €45 per night for Ida-Viru County, and €44 per night on Saaremaa.
• A night's stay in Lääne County cost on average €42 per person, while for Pärnu County the figure was €40.

Statistics Estonia compiled the above data on behalf of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications.

More detailed information on tourism is available from Statistics Estonia here, here and here.

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