During the third quarter of 2023, 41 new hotels opened in Portugal and it is expected that there will be 26 new hotel openings during the last quarter of the year, offering around 2,300 rooms across the country.

Lisbon was, to date, the city responsible for the largest number of hotel openings in the country, totalling 20 new hotel units, with the Alentejo region occupying second place. The North region and the city of Porto follow, with 17 new openings throughout 2023, until the third quarter of the year, with Porto becoming a destination of choice.

Until September 2023, the country totalled more than 61.1 million overnight stays, with the month of August being responsible for around 17% of this total. Considering the same period in 2019, 56.2 million overnight stays were recorded, which means that the 2023 results so far represent an improvement of around 9%, with British, German and Spanish citizens making up the top 3 for overnight stays.

Regarding the number of guests, throughout 2023 there were 23.5 million tourists registered, contrasting with 21.3 million in the same period in 2019 and 20.5 million in 2022. British, Spanish and US citizens figure in the three first places in terms of nationalities, with 1.9 million, 1.9 million, 1.6 million visitors, respectively.

Luís Clara, Capital Markets Associate Director at Savills, states that “2023 is a year marked by success and record numbers, with a forecast of a full recovery in tourism numbers that exceed data from the pre-pandemic period”.

The head of Savills emphasises that “the success of the results is proof of a sustainable commitment to creating high added value that is essential for Portugal’s positioning as a hub specialised in tourism”.