Experience

ANTWERP SUMMER 2025 | 2.9 million day-trippers and 552,161 overnight stays

Posted by Timothy on

The City of Antwerp reported on 2 September a successful 2025 summer season, with events such as Bollekesfeest, Antwerp Pride and concerts by international artists including Ed Sheeran drawing significantly more international visitors to the city. 

Each year, city officials report being happy. 

Day tourism

This summer, Antwerp welcomed 2.9 million day-trippers, a rise of 7.1% compared with summer 2024. Most day visitors came from within Belgium, particularly from the province of Antwerp itself and cities such as Ghent and Brussels.

The increase was largely due to the growing number of international day visitors, particularly from the Netherlands (43% of all foreign visits) and Germany (11%). 

Strikingly, the United States ranked third with 7%. The two Tomorrowland weekends were a major factor, bringing 24,000 American visitors, double the figure recorded last year. Spain (6%) and France (6%) completed the top five.

Saturday proved the most popular day for visiting Antwerp, accounting for 20% of all day trips. The busiest day of the season was 9 August, during Antwerp Pride.

Alderman for Tourism Koen Kennis (N-VA) noted that nearly three million day-trippers had been drawn to the city this summer thanks to major concerts and events such as Bollekesfeest and Antwerp Pride, while overnight stays surpassed half a million, representing a 13% increase on the previous year. Visitor centres at Het Steen and Antwerp-Central Railway Station, as well as the city’s monumental churches, also recorded strong results.

Overnight tourism

A total of 552,161 overnight stays were registered this summer, up 13% on summer 2024. Foreign visitors accounted for 79% of these, an increase of 11% compared with the yearly average.

The largest group of overnight tourists came from the Netherlands (39%), followed by Germany (16%) and the United Kingdom (9%). The top five was completed by visitors from the United States (7%) and Spain (7%).

Antwerp Pride contributed not only to day visits but also to a peak in overnight stays. Bollekesfeest also generated more hotel stays than average.

Hotels

The average hotel occupancy rate in Antwerp this summer stood at 74.2%, an increase of 5.3% compared with summer 2024. Hotels reached an occupancy rate of 90% or higher on seven separate days.

Figures for July were boosted by the two Tomorrowland weekends, when average occupancy was 90.4%. August is traditionally weaker for hotels, but this was offset by strong demand from 7 to 10 August, when concerts by Ed Sheeran, Drake and Carl Cox coincided with the Pride Parade, producing a 95% occupancy rate.

The average room price this summer was €120.96. In July, prices rose to an average of €129.60, driven by Tomorrowland, when the average daily rate reached around €208.29.

Attractions

Antwerp’s monumental churches received around 100,000 visitors this summer, a rise of 21.7%. The Cathedral of Our Lady remained the most popular. The annual Night of the Churches once again brought additional visitors, while the ‘Schatten van Vlieg‘ campaign attracted a younger audience.

Visitor centres

The city’s visitor centres received 135,817 visitors this summer, mainly at Het Steen, representing an increase of 3.8% compared with last year. The Central Station desk recorded an 18% rise.

At Het Steen, visitors could obtain tourist information, purchase regional products and enjoy the summer bar Offline. 

The centres also play an important role for residents: 23.8% of visitors came from Antwerp itself. At the same time, increasing numbers of international tourists are finding their way to Het Steen and Central Station. The busiest day was Museum Night, with 4,038 visitors, while on Mother’s Day, which coincided with the Rubens Market, Het Steen welcomed more than 3,000.

The Antwerp City Pass was sold 1,855 times this summer, up 27.6%. Notably, 72% of sales were multi-day passes, indicating that visitors increasingly prefer to spend at least two days exploring the city. Other popular products included the ATV walking rally and the ‘Expeditie A‘ children’s treasure hunt.

Autumn 2025

A series of events is planned for residents and visitors in the coming months, including Open Monument Day on 14 September, Antwerp Shift on 21 September, Us By Night from 25 to 27 September, Smaakmeesters on 4 and 5 October, the Antwerp Marathon on 19 October, and Winter in Antwerp from 5 December to 4 January 2026.

On tourism

Some tourism statistics