Good for Business, Latvia, Tourism

The number of nights spent by guests at hotels and other tourist accommodation facilities in Riga has increased 4%. or 2.331,159 nights in 2016.

The total number of people staying at at hotels and other types of accommodations in Riga in the first quarter of this year was 263,500.

Most foreign tourists staying at hotels in Riga in the first half of this year were from Russia (19.9%), Estonia (10.3%), Lithuania (10%), the United Kingdom (7%t), Germany (7%), Norway (5.4%), Sweden (5.4%) and Finland (4.3%).

Analyzing the figures about the growth in the number of tourists from the countries identified by the RTAB as priority and potential target countries, the steepest rise was observed for tourists from the United States (40 percent), Sweden (20%), France and Russia (14% each), Belarus (12%), Estonia and Lithuania (9% each).

During the first quarter of this year, the highest occupancy rates were reported by hotels in Riga in March (37.3%). Most of the tourists or 72% stayed at four-star hotels. There are 32 four-star hotels in Riga with a total of 7,572 beds.

The total number of tourist accommodation facilities operating in Riga in the first quarter of 2017 was 130, and the total number of beds was 15,643.

The Riga Tourism Development Office (RTAB) was established in late 2009 by the Riga City Council (70%), the national air carrier airBaltic (10%), the Latvian Hotel and Restaurant Association (10%) and the Association of Latvian Tourism Agents (10%) for promotion of tourism and Riga as a tourism destination for foreign travelers.