On the first day of school in September 2024, the City of Antwerp presented some facts and figures on the 2024 summer in Antwerp and tourism statistics. 

“Although the weather was not always good in July, Antwerp still had a successful summer. The city was buzzing with activities and events, with something for everyone. The Bollekesfeest, Museum Night, Antwerp Pride and many other attractions attracted local and international visitors to the Koekenstad“, the press release says.

Day tourism

The city of Antwerp received 2.7 million day tourists this summer, an increase of 3.8% compared to the summer of 2023. Most day visitors came from Belgium: mainly from the province itself and cities such as Ghent and Brussels.

This increase in the number of day tourists is mainly due to the increasing number of international day tourists, especially from the Netherlands (44.4%) and Germany (11.6%). Just like last summer, the top 3 is completed by Spain (7.4%). 

Due to the large number of summer flights from Spain to Brussels, many Spanish tourists take a day trip to Antwerp. The United Kingdom (6.2%) and the United States (6.2%) complete the top 5. Incidentally, there were even more American day tourists this year than last summer, especially during the two weekends of Tomorrowland. Both weekends attracted 12,000 American visitors.

Saturday is the most popular day for a visit to Antwerp: good for 18% of all day visits. The busiest day in Antwerp was Saturday 10 August, during Antwerp Pride. Saturday 27 July was also a top day, with events such as the Crelan 3×3 Masters and the second weekend of Tomorrowland.

Overnight tourism

Based on mobile phone data counts, 493,000 overnight stays were recorded, an increase of 6.2% compared to the summer of 2023.

The majority of these overnight stays are for international tourists, a trend that became even stronger this summer: no less than 79% of all overnight tourists come from abroad. The largest international group is the Dutch (39%), followed by the Germans (15.5%) and the British (8.7%). The top five is completed by American tourists (7.5%) and Spanish visitors (7.3%).

Here too, there has been an increase in visitors from the United States. This summer, the number of American overnight tourists increased by 26% compared to last year. This increase has been noticeable for several years: compared to 2019, the number of visitors from the US has grown enormously, both in day tourism and overnight tourism.​

Antwerp Pride overnight stays

“The Antwerp Pride not only attracted a large number of day tourists, but also a peak in the number of overnight stays. There was also a peak in overnight stays during the Saturday of the Bollekesfeest and the first Saturday of July.”

Interestingly, this contradicts an earlier statement by the hotel industry. 

Hotels

The average occupancy rate at Antwerp hotels this summer is 68.4%. This is 0.8% lower than the summer of 2023.

Traditionally, August is a slightly less strong month for hotels, partly due to the standstill in business tourism. The figures for July, on the other hand, were positively influenced by the two Tomorrowland weekends, with an average occupancy rate of 90%.

The average room rate this summer was €126.28, in July this rose to an average day room rate of €136.02. This was mainly due to the two Tomorrowland weekends, where the average day room rate was around €155.

Alderman for Tourism Koen Kennis (N-VA): “We know that we have great assets with our range of shops, our catering and our cultural offering. That is why we are continuing our efforts to put Antwerp on the map as an attractive destination, also across the border. We still have room for growth in certain forms of tourism. With the Antwerp Convention Bureau, we are strongly committed to the growth of business tourism, which typically leads to overnight stays on weekdays. Our ambitions for the coming years are high.”

Like a prayer

The monumental churches in Antwerp welcomed approximately 83,000 visitors this summer. The decrease in the number of visitors compared to last summer is due to the St. Charles Borromeo Church (Sint-Carolus Borromeuskerk), for which an entrance fee is now charged. Of all the churches, the Cathedral of Our Lady remains the most popular. The Night of the Churches also attracted extra visitors this summer, with no fewer than 22 Antwerp churches taking part.

Experience Antwerp

This summer, 802 guided tours were booked via Experience Antwerp, an increase of 15%. The most popular tours were those of the Antwerp City Guides, De Ruien and the Museum Vleeshuis. The exhibition ‘Six Centuries of Vleeshuis’ is currently taking place there, the museum will soon be temporarily closed for renovation.

Visitor centres

This summer we welcomed 127,375 visitors to our visitor centres, mainly in Het Steen. Visitors to Het Steen could not only find tourist information, but also regional products and the summer bar Offline.

The visitor centres also play an important role for the residents of Antwerp, with 26.8% of all visitors coming from the city. At the same time, we see that more and more foreign tourists are finding their way to the visitor centres of Het Steen and the Central Station. Peak moments for the visitor centres were Museum Night and the Bollekesfeest.

The Antwerp City Pass was sold 1,309 times, which represents an increase of 35.5%. In addition, 70% of all tickets sold are multi-day passes. This shows that tourists like to spend two days or more to discover the city.

In addition to the Antwerp City Pass, many other products were also sold at the counters. The ATV Walking Rally and the Expedition A children’s treasure hunt remain top favourites.

Cruises

This summer, seven sea cruises docked in Antwerp, with 43% more passengers compared to last year. Special were the luxury ships Seven Seas Voyager, Seven Seas Splendor and Seven Seas Mariner, which docked in Antwerp for the first time and have room for 700 guests and 450 crew members.

The city welcomed 181 river cruises this summer, good for some 27,461 passengers – an increase of 17% compared to last year. Many more cruises are expected this autumn, including 10 sea cruises. Most cruises come from Germany and the United Kingdom.

Autumn 2024

This autumn, there are still many exciting events planned for Antwerp residents and visitors. Unique this year is the Ensor programme.

A selection from the offer:

• Liberation celebrations: 7-8 September.
• Open Monuments Day: 8 September.
• DAKkan: 20-22 September.
• Antwerp Shift: 22 September.
• Us By Night: 26-28 September.
• Ensor: 28 September to 19 January with exhibitions in KMSKA, Museum Plantin-Moretus, FOMU and MoMu.
• Smaakmeesters: 5-6 October.
• European Open (tennis): 13-20 October.
• Antwerp Marathon: 20 October.
• Winter in Antwerp: 6 December to 5 January.

On tourism

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• Spain saw a surge of Belgians visiting in the first quarter of 2024.
• Antwerp number 1 of 40 most exciting cities to visit in 2024.
• Antwerp’s municipal museums welcomed over 1.5 million visitors in 2023.
• CLIMATE CHANGE & TRAVEL | Is Belgium ready to be the Spain and Italy of the future?.
• Condé Nast Traveler praises Antwerp as one of the Best Places to Go in 2024 in Europe.
• Flanders’ art cities residents still proud of their city, but highlight drawbacks of tourism more
• Antwerp hotel industry demands stricter rules and enforcement for Airbnb as business tourism is not recovering.
• ANTWERP | 13.5 million day tourists, 2.6 million overnight stays and less Dutch visitors in 2023.
• ANTWERP | 2022 tourism statistics show recovery towards 2019 numbers.
• City happy with Winter in Antwerp 2022-2023 edition.
• City sees Winter in Antwerp 2023-2024 breaking attendance records.
• Belgians make 4.5 million day trips to Antwerp every year.
• ANTWERP | 2.2 million day tourists and 398K overnight stays in the summer of 2023.
• ANTWERP | 2 million day tourists and 337K overnight stays in the summer of 2022.
• Belgians travelled massively in the first quarter of 2022.
• The Major Flaws of domestic tourism in Belgium.
• Discovering Belgium and the Netherlands in COVID times.
• Will COVID-19 be the End of Business Class?.
• The world of travel and planning after coronavirus COVID-19.