The number of Romanian and foreign tourists who checked into local hotels increased by 13.4% in January this year compared to January 2016, reaching 659,000, according to data from the National Statistics Institute (INS) published yesterday.

The number of overnight stays, a key indicator in the tourism sector, went up by 8.5% in January to 1.24 million.

Romania recorded some 523,500 local tourists in January, up 14.5% year-on-year, and 135,500 foreign tourists, up 9.2% year-on-year. Most foreign tourists came from Europe (103,000), mostly from the EU member states (80,300 people).

Some 14,800 Germans visited Romania in January, followed by over 14,300 Israelis. The number of tourists from the Republic of Moldova reached about 9,600 in January.

In 2016, the number of foreign tourists in Romania increased by 10.6% compared to the previous year to 2.47 million. It was a record level of the last decade.

editor@romania-insider.com