Cyprus breaks 1m tourist mark in H1 2015

The number of tourist arrivals breached the 1 mln level in the first half of 2015, a record in almost a decade, according to official statistics, suggesting that the drop from Russia has been compensated by a an increase from the UK and Germany.

The Cyprus Tourism Organisation said this was “encouraging news and several conclusions are deducted from this data.”

In the January-Juneperiod, tourist arrivals reached 1,036,000, up 5.7% from the first half of 2014, according to the statistical service Cystat.

However, June arrivals totalled 337,000, down 1.5% from the year-earlier record monthly figure, making last month the second best June ever.

For the first half, the biggest number of arrivals of just over 400,000 was from the UK, up 14% year-on-year, followed by a 25% increase from Germany, 42% from Greece and 49% from Israel.

In the period, tourists from Russia were less by 21%, but still remained the second best market.

“Based on all the data, this fall is manageable,” the CTO said, explaining that 2014 was an extraordinary year for Russian tourists and it was before the EU and western sanctions kicked in over the Ukraine crisis, sending the country into recession and the rouble tumbling.

Source: Financial Mirror