Bahrain tourism sector tops targets; revenue hits $4bln

Bahrain tourism sector tops targets; revenue hits $4bln

Bahrain's tourism sector last year exceeded targets set under its 2022-26 tourism strategy, Tourism Minister Fatima bint Jaffer Al Sairafi has said.

Tourism revenues topped BD1.5 billion ($3.98 billion) in 2022, an increase of 50% compared to the target figure for the same year, which stood at BD1 billion, said the minister chairing the board meeting of the Bahrain Tourism and Exhibitions Authority (BTEA) on Sunday.

She stressed the importance of harnessing all efforts to achieve more tourism successes during the next stage in order to reach the goals of the economic recovery plan, a Bahrain News Agency report said.

According to the 2022 statistics, the number of visitors arriving for tourism purposes reached 9.9 million, up by 19% over the target number of 8.3 million visitors.

The average daily expenditure of tourists exceeded the target number by 10%, with a record of BD76 per visitor, compared to a target average expenditure of BD69.

The average duration of stay for tourists exceeded the target number of 3.3 days, recording 3.5 days, which represents an increase of more than 6%.

BTEA Chief Executive Officer Dr Nasser Qaidi said inbound tourism in Bahrain has recovered during the year 2022 by 90% compared to pre-pandemic levels, outperforming the international