LA VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – Italy remains the top choice for Maltese travelers, according to data from the Maltese National Statistics Office (NSO). The outbound tourism from Malta has seen significant growth in the first half of 2026, based on official statistics. From January to June, an estimated 419,940 trips were made abroad, marking a rise of 7.6% compared to the same period in 2025.
Italy accounted for 34.8% of all trips, totaling 145,986, firmly establishing itself as the preferred destination. Spain ranked second with 39,924 trips (9.5%), closely followed by the United Kingdom with 38,977 trips (9.3%). During this timeframe, Maltese tourists spent a total of 3.11 million nights abroad, reflecting an annual increase of 10.6%, while the average vacation length slightly rose from 7.2 to 7.4 nights.
Although the average spending per tourist decreased from 967 to 925 euros, the total expenditure grew by 2.9%, reaching 388.5 million euros.
These figures were compiled using Tourstat, the continuous border survey by the NSO, which also monitors incoming tourism flows. During the same period, over 2.13 million tourists visited Malta, suggesting that the country might surpass last year’s record of over four million arrivals.
