According to a report by ECO, national tourist accommodation received 1.6 million guests in March, which represents an increase of 464% compared to the same month of 2021, but still below the figures for 2019, according to data from the National Statistics Institute (INE). Despite this, the average price per occupied room exceeded that recorded in the pre-pandemic period — 74.3 euros in March 2021.

The domestic market contributed with 1.3 million overnight stays, while overnight stays from international guests totalled 2.7 million. In the international market, the British dominated in the number of guests, followed by the Germans and the French.

Most sought after destinations

Regarding the most sought after locations, the Lisbon Metropolitan Area concentrated 30.1% of overnight stays in March, followed by the Algarve (21.8%), North (16.7%) and Madeira (14.2%), states the INE. Compared to March 2019, all regions showed a decrease in the number of overnight stays, with emphasis on the Algarve (-18.8%) and Lisbon (-16.2%), says the INE.

In March, the average stay in tourist accommodation establishments (2.55 nights) increased by 14%. The average stay of residents (1.81 nights) decreased by 5.8% and that of non-residents (3.17 nights) decreased by 16.4%.