In the second quarter of 2024, accommodation establishments in the Czech Republic saw a year-on-year increase of 3.3% in the total number of arrivals and a 0.9% rise in overnight stays. While the number of foreign guests grew, the number of domestic guests declined.
Total overnight stays amounted to 13.9 million nights, reflecting a slight increase of 0.9% compared to the previous year. Foreign guests contributed significantly to this result with 6.5 million nights, marking an increase of 6.6%. Conversely, domestic guests experienced a 3.5% decline, totaling 7.5 million overnight stays.
Roman Mikula, Head of the Department for Tourism and Environmental Statistics at the Czech Statistical Office, explained: “Accommodation establishments welcomed 6 million guests in the second quarter of this year. The 3.3% increase compared to the previous year was primarily driven by the rise in foreign guests, while the number of domestic guests fell by 1.4% to 3.2 million.”
The successful staging of the Ice Hockey World Championship in Prague and Ostrava in May 2024 is also reflected in the visitor numbers. The event led to a significant increase in foreign visitors to Prague and the Moravian-Silesian Region. In Prague, the number of foreign visitors rose by 9.2% compared to the same period last year, with notable increases from Finland, Switzerland, and Canada. In the Moravian-Silesian Region, overnight stays by foreign guests surged by 25.7%, with the highest increases coming from Sweden and Kazakhstan.
The hotel segment saw a 2.1% rise in overnight stays, totaling 9.5 million nights, with particularly strong growth among foreign guests. In contrast, guesthouses and other types of accommodation experienced declines in both the number of guests and overnight stays.
Nine out of 14 regions recorded an increase in overnight stays compared to the previous year. The Ústí nad Labem, Liberec, Hradec Králové, South Moravia, and Pardubice regions were the only ones where overnight stays decreased.
The figures reveal a strong increase in foreign guests, especially from China, where overnight stays rose by 76.9%. Meanwhile, there was a slight decline in guests from Germany. Overall, the trend of growing international tourism in the Czech Republic continues.
