Bahrain visitor numbers jump 51% to 5.9mln in H1

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Bahrain received 5.9 million visitors during the first six months of this year, a 51% increase from 3.9 million during the same period last year.

The total number of hotel nights increased by 54% to reach 8.9 million in the first half of 2023 compared to 5.8 million for the same period in 2022, according to the latest tourism indicators.

The figures were revealed during the board meeting of the Bahrain Tourism and Exhibition Authority (BTEA), chaired by Tourism Minister Fatima bint Jaffar Al Sairaf. BTEA Chief Executive Officer Dr Nasser Al Qaidi was alos present, a Bahrain News Agency report said.

During the meeting, the panel reviewed the latest key tourism indicators for the period January-June 2023, which showed remarkable improvement on a quarterly and annual basis, as the number of tourists soared in terms of nationalities, types of trips and means of transportation.

The total inbound tourism revenues increased by 48% to reach BD924 million ($2.451 billion) in H1 2023, up from BD623 million for the same period of 2022.

The number of one-day visitors soared by 43%, from 2.3 million visitors in the period January-June 2022, to reach 3.3 million visitors in H1 this year. The number of overnight visitors increased by 63%, from approximately 1.6 million visitors in the first six of the year 2022, to reach about 2.6 million visitors during the same period of the year 2023.

Al Sairafi highlighted progress in achieving the goals set in the 2022-2026 Tourism Strategy and expressed confidence in achieving further strides and boosting tourism investments.

Dr Qaidi gave an update about tourism projects across Bahrain and highlighted the improving rate of hotel occupancy during the first six months of this year.

The meeting also discussed opportunities to enhance cooperation with Gulf Air, the national carrier of the kingdom.