Malta’s tourism intensity outstrips Amsterdam and Barcelona

Malta’s tourism intensity exceeded indicative citywide averages for Amsterdam and Barcelona, according to calculations using official overnight-stay figures, as Malta Tourism Authority chief executive Carlo Micallef maintains that the country is not experiencing overtourism.

The National Statistics Office recorded annual tourism intensity of 8.7 in 2025, equivalent to approximately nine net tourists per 100 residents on an average day.

Calculations using 2024 overnight stays and resident populations put Amsterdam at approximately 6.7 overnight visitors per 100 residents and Barcelona at approximately six.

The comparison is indicative rather than a harmonised ranking.

Malta’s figures cover rented and non-rented accommodation and subtract residents’ nights abroad, while the city figures count guest nights without an equivalent subtraction. Accommodation coverage also differs.

Amsterdam reported almost 23 million overnight stays in 2024, while Barcelona recorded approximately 37 million. Dividing annual stays by days and resident populations produces the daily ratios.

“I do not believe we have overtourism,” Micallef said in an interview with The Malta Independent a few weeks ago.

He argued that shorter visitor stays and arrivals spread more evenly throughout the year reduced the impact of increasing tourist numbers.

Micallef nevertheless acknowledged concentrations in Valletta and Mdina, outlining efforts to stagger cruise arrivals and disperse excursions.

The NSO data show substantially higher intensity in Malta’s tourism hotspots than the national average.

San Ġiljan recorded an annual intensity of 82.9 tourists per 100 residents, followed by Valletta at 80.5.

In August, San Ġiljan’s figure reached 143, bringing its effective population to approximately 37,464 against 15,420 residents. Valletta recorded 98.5 tourists per 100 residents that month.

Even in December, Valletta’s intensity stood at 55.9, indicating substantial tourism activity beyond summer.

Nationally, tourism added an estimated 50,767 people on an average day during 2025, increasing the effective population from a resident baseline of 581,244 to 632,011.

The effective population peaked at 671,576 in August and fell to 594,428 in December.

Annual national intensity rose from 8.2 in 2024 to 8.7.