2020 saw a significant increase of two thirds over 2019 of Maltese holidaying in Gozo, mostly due to COVID-19 restrictions. The National Statistics Office indicated a 62% rise in holidaymakers from Malta making their way to Gozo as travel to foreign countries proved too risky.
The same could not be said however for Gozitans holidaying in Malta. There was in fact a year-on-year drop of 46% of Gozitan tourists coming for staycations in Malta. With the pandemic forcing the closure of global ports, non-essential travel between the two islands was prohibited between April 3rd and May 4th.
Foreign tourism experienced a 76.1% drop from the previous year, with Maltese preferring to limit their travel between Gozo and Comino. Maltese residents travelling to Gozo and Comino stood at 348,489 (96.7% of total domestic tourists) in 2020. Most spent between one and three nights (80.6%) with average length increasing from 2.6 to 3 nights compared to 2019.
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Photo Source: Hotels.com