In September 2024, tourism activity in the Azores totaled 509,300 overnight stays, representing an increase of 8.2% over the same period last year. This growth covered the main accommodation segments, including hotels, local accommodation, and rural tourism.
According to data from the Azores Regional Statistics Service (SREA), the national market accounted for 127,300 overnight stays, corresponding to 25% of the total and reflecting a year-on-year drop of 1.5%. On the other hand, the number of overnight stays from foreign residents reached 382,000, equivalent to 75% of the total, an increase of 11.8% compared to September 2023. The total number of guests rose to 151,800, representing an increase of 5.7%, while the average stay was 3.35 nights, a positive variation of 2.3%.
Analysis by type of accommodation revealed that hotels accounted for 52.4% of overnight stays, with a total of 266,900, followed by local accommodation, which accounted for 42.5% (216,200 overnight stays), and rural tourism, which recorded 5.1% (26,200 overnight stays). In the accumulated period from January to September 2024, the Azores reached 3.5 million overnight stays, an increase of 11.2% compared to the same period in 2023.
The United States of America led international source markets, with 64,800 overnight stays, an increase of 7.6%. Spain stood out with a growth of 34.2%, reaching 62.3 thousand overnight stays, while Germany recorded a slight reduction of 0.4%, totaling 64.5 thousand overnight stays. Other markets with significant favorable variations included Czechia (+56.6%), the United Kingdom (+48.0%), and Poland (+27.8%). On the other hand, Israel showed the most significant drop, with a reduction of 51.8%, followed by Hungary (-31.0%) and France (-10.6%).
The island of São Miguel had the highest number of overnight stays with 324.1 thousand (67.1% of the total), followed by Terceira with 62.3 thousand, Pico with 32.1 thousand, and Faial with 28.9 thousand. Flores and Santa Maria islands showed the most favorable year-on-year variations, with increases of 21.8% and 12.0%, respectively. On the other hand, Graciosa (-9.6%) and Faial (-2.0%) recorded negative variations.
In the hotel sector, 266,900 overnight stays were recorded in September, an increase of 7.1% compared to 2023. The domestic market contributed 82.4 thousand overnight stays (-2.8%), while international markets recorded 184.5 thousand overnight stays (+12.2%). The number of hotel guests rose to 86.4 thousand (+6.3%), and the average stay was 3.09 nights (+0.8%). From January to September, the hotel industry recorded 1.9 million overnight stays (+7.5%). Total hotel revenue in September reached 25 million euros (+18.8%), and revenue from accommodation reached 19.9 million euros (+19.8%), with an average revenue per available room (RevPAR) of 112.6 euros.
With 216.2 thousand overnight stays in September, local accommodation grew by 7.6%, driven by the 9.9% increase in overnight stays from foreign residents (175.2 thousand). From January to September, this type of accommodation accumulated 1.5 million overnight stays (+15.3%). Rural tourism showed the most remarkable relative growth, with 26.2 thousand overnight stays (+26.5%) in September, with a 39.5% increase in overnight stays from residents in Portugal.
Rural tourism had the highest year-on-year growth in September, with 26,200 overnight stays (+26.5%). The domestic market contributed 3.9 thousand overnight stays, an increase of 39.5%, and the international markets contributed 22.3 thousand overnight stays (+24.5%). The number of guests was 7.9 thousand (+33.4%), and the average stay was 3.32 nights, a reduction of 5.1%. Total income from rural tourism increased by 56.3% to 2.7 million euros.

Translated to English as a community outreach program from the Portuguese Beyond Borders Institute (PBBI) and the Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures Department (MCLL) as part of Bruma Publication and ADMA (Azores-Diaspora Media Alliance) at California State University, Fresno, PBBI thanks Luso Financial for sponsoring NOVIDADES.