On Thursday, the National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (STATEC) published its latest figures on tourism in Luxembourg and on the tourism practices of he country’s residents.
Last year, Luxembourg residents made 2.6 million leisure trips and 323,000 business trips. They spent an average of 36 nights abroad, the vast majority (93%) in a European destination, at an average cost of €163 per person per night.
As far as business travel is concerned, last year residents spent an average of five nights abroad at a cost of €358 per person. Again, almost all (92%) were to European destinations. Half of all business trips took place in a border country.
For both business and leisure tourism, the three border countries were the most frequent destinations in 2022, with France in the lead (21%), followed by Germany (18%), and Belgium in third (11%). Five countries, each accounting for between 5% and 7% of stays, rank behind the top three: the United Kingdom, Italy, Portugal, Spain and Switzerland.
A further 8% of holidays took place outside Europe, including 5% in America (3% in the USA).
In 2022, more than 1.16 million tourists travelled to the Grand Duchy and amassed a total of around 2.8 million overnight stays, which approximates the pre-pandemic level recorded in 2019.
Arrivals at tourist establishments are dominated by non-resident tourists (87%), but there has been an increase in local tourism. There were almost 77,0000 arrivals by residents, compared with just 67,000 in 2019, a 15% increase.
Among non-residents, most were EU-27 tourists with almost 840,000 arrivals, or 72% of total arrivals in 2022. The top three are still the Netherlands (223,000 arrivals), Belgium (180,000 arrivals), and Germany (172,000 arrivals).
The STATEC report notes that since the health crisis, there has been a decline in Asian tourism, from 59,000 arrivals in 2019 to just 25,000 in 2022, a drop of almost 60%.
Although the total number of arrivals in 2022 is similar to that in 2019, there is a different geographical distribution between these two periods. Some regions are in slight decline while others are gaining momentum.
The Centre, Ardennes, and Moselle regions are in slight decline while the Mullerthal and the South have exceeded their 2019 levels. The breakdown between residents and non-residents has not changed.
Unsurprisingly, the Centre remains the leader with almost 680,000 arrivals (6 out of 10), marking a slight drop compared with 2019 (709,000 arrivals).
