LUXEMBOURG / RankWire.AI / – In the first half of 2026, tourist accommodation across the European Union experienced a total of 1.321 billion overnight stays. This figure marks an increase of 1.7% compared to the 1.299 billion nights recorded during the same timeframe in 2025. Eurostat provided the data for stays from January to June within the 27-member bloc. The statistics encompass nights spent by both domestic and international tourists at commercial accommodation providers.
Ireland saw the most significant growth among EU nations, with overnight stays rising by 14.6% from the previous year. Malta experienced an increase of 9.9%, while Slovakia’s growth was 5.9%. Conversely, nine countries faced declines in overnight stays over the six-month period. Cyprus recorded the steepest drop at 7.7%, with Romania following at 6.7%. These figures reflect nights spent rather than visitor arrivals, tourism revenue, or travel expenditure.
Foreign visitors accounted for 48.9% of all tourist accommodation nights in the EU during the first half of 2026. Malta had the highest proportion of international overnight stays, at 95.2% of its total. Cyprus was next at 92.6%, and Luxembourg reported an 87.7% share. The data include non-resident guests from other EU nations and destinations outside the bloc. Domestic tourists made up the remaining share of overnight stays across the EU.
International tourist nights show notably stronger growth
Nights spent by international visitors increased by 2.5% compared to the first half of 2025. Meanwhile, nights by domestic tourists grew by only 0.9% over the same period. This indicates that international overnight stays grew nearly three times faster than domestic ones. Foreign guests now represent almost half of all recorded tourism nights across the EU. The data highlight how resident and non-resident travel contributed separately to the overall 1.7% rise in accommodation nights.
In several major domestic tourism markets, foreign visitors made up a relatively small portion of accommodation demand. Germany reported an international visitor share of 18.5% during the first six months of 2026. Poland’s share was 19.8%, while Romania’s stood at 23.0%. Each of these countries received less than a quarter of its tourism nights from non-resident visitors. The figures reveal significant differences in how accommodation demand is composed across individual EU member states.
Accommodation includes hotels and short-term lodging options
Tourism accommodation data cover hotels, similar establishments, holiday rentals, and other short-stay lodgings. They also account for camping sites, recreational vehicle parks, and trailer parks. Eurostat defines an overnight stay as each night a guest spends at a tourist accommodation. The first-half figures do not include nights in non-rented accommodations. This standardized measurement framework enables national data to be combined into a comprehensive total for tourism accommodation across the EU.
Earlier data from the first quarter indicated 471.1 million tourism nights within the EU, representing a 3.4% increase compared to the same period in 2025. January accounted for 143.5 million nights, up 3.2%; February recorded 154.4 million nights, up 3.4%; and March reached 173.2 million nights, up 3.7%. The latest figures for the first half extend the reporting through June, bringing the total EU tourist accommodation nights to 1.321 billion for the first six months of 2026.