Malta’s 10-year tourist number target could be reached in one

Malta could reach its 10-year tourist number target of 4.5 million that was officially set just months ago later this year.

The Malta Vision 2050, launched in February, outlines that “in the period to 2035, tourism policy will focus on rebalancing value versus volume. Visitor numbers are expected to grow only moderately, reaching around 4.4 – 4.5 million tourists, while the sector’s economic contribution increases more strongly.”

But the latest National Statistics Office data for this year shows that this could already be out of date, as the country could reach the 4.5 million target by the end of this year. In fact, Tourism Minister Jo-Etienne Abela said earlier this year that he thinks the target could be reached this year.

2,131,825 inbound tourists were registered as having visited the country between January and June, a massive increase of 18.1 per cent over the same period in 2025.

Given that the total number of inbound tourists in the second half of 2025 was 2.2 million, and for Malta to reach the 4.5 million target this year Malta needs 2,368,175 tourists in the second half, the 2035 target could realistically be reached.

While total tourist expenditure between January and June was estimated at €1,795.6 million, 14.8 per cent higher than that recorded for the same period in 2025, total expenditure per capita decreased to €842 from €866 in 2025. This means that while the number of tourists rose, individually they are spending less.

The Malta Vision 2050 had outlined that average expenditure per night is projected to rise from around €144 in 2024 to €275–€285 by 2035 in nominal terms. “As a result, total tourism expenditure is forecast to reach €6.8–€7.2 billion by 2035, despite relatively contained growth in arrivals.”

Total nights spent by inbound tourists between January-June went up by 10.1 per cent, reaching 11.8 million nights.

Calculating the average amount spent per tourist in the first half of this year, it comes to around €152 per night, which is far off from the Vision 2050 aim.

A debate in the country over the tourism sector has been ongoing, with the aim being to attract higher-quality, higher-spending tourists, although the average spend indicates that this has not yet begun to happen. MHRA President Tony Zahra had spoken about tackling numbers, and had indicated that bed supply could be limited.

Malta was last year flagged as one of Europe’s destinations most at risk of overtourism.