So far over 2.3 million people have passed through the airport

Number of passengers arriving by air this year rises by 2.8%

Busy. Some 68% of the airport´s passengers travelled in the four months of the Œhigh season´

The number of overnight stays this summer is 4.2% higher than in the same period in 2005, with 77% of hoteliers confirming an increase in their clientele

C.M.W..Maó

According to statistics released by AENA, the number of passengers arriving by air this summer, 1,761,456, is 2.8% higher than 2005´s figure of 1,710,740.

The early part of the tourist season saw a more noticeable difference with June this year registering an increase of 6.1% over the same month in 2005. Although July, August and September still showed a rise in the number of arrivals the percentage increase each month was more moderate; 2.2%, 2.3% and 1.7% respectively.

This increase is partly attributable to the extra flights laid on - a total of 17,957 arrivals and departures this summer compared to 16,206 in 2005, a rise of around 10%.

In the year to date, over 2.3 million passengers have passed through Menorca Airport, 68% of them during the four months of the high season, i.e. June to September. So far this year, 27,219 aircraft have landed at or taken off from Menorca.

More overnight stays

According to information published by Exceltur, June, July and August saw an increase of 4.2% in the number of overnight stays on the island compared to the same period last year. These figures put Menorca in fifth place in a nationwide performance list.

Within the Balearic Islands, 77% of hoteliers confirm that they have seen an increase in their clientele. A report by Exceltur cites the continued increase in Spanish tourism as one of the reasons for this improvement together with a slight rise in the number of foreign visitors, due to a lack of confidence in the safety of some of the islands´ competitive markets.

However, the association warns of an average drop of 10.7% in income from foreign tourists this year.