Tourism Indicator for December in the Azores
The Tourism Indicator predicts that approximately 129,500 overnight stays will be recorded in December across the various types of tourist accommodation in the Autonomous Region of the Azores, including hotels, local lodging, and rural tourism. This information was disclosed today by the Regional Statistics Service of the Azores (SREA) on its website.
Comparison with Previous Year
According to the SREA, this estimated figure represents a 4.9% increase compared to the definitive value from the same month last year, which was 123,500 overnight stays. The report also highlights the number of passengers arriving at the airports in the Azores from both international and national locations, excluding inter-island travel within the archipelago.
International and National Passengers
Previously released data by the SREA indicates that the number of passengers arriving from international flights reached 12,992, marking a 13.1% increase compared to the previous year. Additionally, travelers from the mainland and Madeira totaled 61,821, which is a modest rise of 1.3%.
Automated Transactions in December
The publication also emphasizes the withdrawals and purchases made at ATMs and automatic payment terminals (TPA) by both nationals and foreigners in December. National residents spent a total of 220.3 million euros, while foreigners contributed 10.3 million euros. Specifically, purchases made through TPAs amounted to 178.8 million euros, reflecting an 8.7% increase compared to the same period last year. Out of this, 169.8 million euros were made with national bank cards (up by 8.8%), and 9 million euros with international bank cards (up by 7.4%).
Withdrawals from ATMs
On the other hand, cash withdrawals from ATMs reached 51.7 million euros, showing a slight decrease of 1.8%. This includes 50.4 million euros from national accounts (down by 1.8%) and 1.3 million euros from international accounts (down by 1.1%).
Purpose of the Tourism Indicator
The SREA explains that the Tourism Indicator aims to estimate the overall evolution of economic activity within the tourism sector in the Autonomous Region of the Azores. The IT-Açores is derived from the aggregation of overnight stay estimates across the three types of tourist accommodation and is released approximately three weeks before the publication of the Tourism Activity highlight.
Methodology for Estimations
The overnight stay estimates for hotels, rural tourism, and local lodging are based on data collected from the Guest Stay Survey in Hotels and other accommodations, as well as extrapolating trends according to the expected response rate in each case.
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