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Internet booking and low fares airlines have proved to be a winning combination for Italian tourists to Malta – 98 per cent of travellers on Ryanair’s route from Pisa were first-time tourists who found it easy to book via internet for a short Malta break, a research report by the airline reveals.
But there is no doubt about the difference between day-trippers and the long-haul holidaymaker – Ryanair’s passengers spend less and stay in Malta for shorter periods.
British tourists, for example, spend around Lm39 every day. They are mainly middle-aged couples, with average incomes of around Lm1,200 a month.
The Italians are younger – 38 years, just half of them are married (51 per cent compared to 77 per cent from the UK) and they spend Lm34 daily on holiday in Malta, with an average monthly income half that of British tourists.
The majority stay in Sliema and St Julian’s for an average of five nights. Brits stay longer – seven nights on average, and mainly in the St Paul’s Bay, Bugibba, Qawra localities.
But it’s the internet that has worked wonders. Over 60 per cent of Italian tourists booked their holidays within less than a month, 90 per cent doing so at a click of the mouse. Almost all of them were first-time travellers to Malta, enticed by the mild winter climate and value-for-money.
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