Over 20 million foreign tourists spent the night in NL last year

The number of foreign tourists staying overnight in the Netherlands continues to grow. Last year, a total of 20.1 million tourists from abroad spent at least one night in our country, a growth of 7 percent compared to the year before, ANP and De Telegraaf report based on figures from the Netherlands' office of tourism and congresses NBTC.

The increase is in line with expectations, NBTC director Jos Vranken said to ANP. NBTC expects that the number of tourists will increase to 30 million in the next decade. 

The vast majority, 80 percent, of tourists who visited the Netherlands last year came from elsewhere in Europe. "In particular our neighboring countries Germany, Belgium, the UK and France come here in large numbers. Together with Americans and Chinese, they make up three-quarters of all foreign tourist overnight stays," Vranken said to the Telegraaf. 

The number of overnight stays in the Netherlands increased by 10 percent. Two-thirds of these overnight says were in the Randstad, including 35 percent in Amsterdam. And 10 percent were on the coast. Only a small percentage visited a Dutch forest or lake. 

The Netherlands is mainly popular for short getaways, Vranken said to ANP. But more and more visitors extend their stay, which is why the number of visitors increased less than the number of nights spent in accommodations in the Netherlands. Germans and Britons in particular stay in the Netherlands longer than before.