A STRONG INCREASE IN NUMBERSÂ
2024 saw a strong increase in visitors travelling to and from the Republic of Cyprus. Visitor arrivals surpassed 4 million annually for the first time giving a welcome boost to Cyprus tourism. This increase constitutes a 5% increase overall, compared to 2023. The months of June through September saw the most visitor arrivals on the island. August remained the most popular month, recording just over 550,000 arrivals. This is an 8.5% increase on August 2023. December also saw a strong increase in arrivals reaching 133,063, compared to 123,630 in December 2023. This marked a 7.6% overall increase. December’s figures were not solely down to Cyprus tourism but were also made up of Cypriot residents travelling abroad for leisure, business and studies.
NUMBERS ON TARGET
Despite some adverse conditions and a challenging start to the year, recent figures have indicated promising signs for the tourism sector on the island. The increases in passengers arriving and departing from Cyprus’s international airports and seaports have beaten previous records with June, July & August performing particularly well. The industry, however, still faces challenges with a dramatic drop in flight availability from important European markets, such as France, Denmark, and Sweden, impacting the tourist sector negatively and making it harder for Cyprus to attract visitors from these countries. The introduction of new European-wide visa controls this year is also expected to negatively impact visitor numbers to the island from the United Kingdom, which remains the island’s biggest visitor market.Â
AN AMBITIOUS STRATEGY
THE MINISTRY OF TOURISM, has recently identified a new strategy to increase visitor numbers that involves introducing as many new direct flight routes to the island as possible. It is believed that this is the best way to increase visitor numbers and has resulted in the organisation constantly seeking to implement this strategy across the board. This has resulted in a generous package of lucrative incentive, aimed at several national airline carriers from all over the world. A good example of this strategy is the United Kingdom, which still accounts for the largest source of visitors to the island. The United Kingdom is currently responsible for approximately 40% of all visitor traffic to the island and this is partly due to British Airways expanding their direct flight schedules to Cyprus. The national carrier’s Gatwick to Larnaca routes to Cyprus are now permanent, increasing the island’s air connectivity to the United Kingdom and there are plans to introduce new direct routes from other parts of the United Kingdom. Cyprus has also seen increased visitor numbers travelling from Israel, Poland, and Germany after the introduction of more direct routes were established in these respective countries.
