According to preliminary information from the Federal Statistical Office of Germany, 5.6 million overnight stays in accommodation properties of at least ten beds were recorded in March, 2016 – an increase of nine percent year-over-year.

In total, 15 million overnights by international travellers were documented during the first quarter of 2016 – seven percent more than during the first quarter in 2015.

Petra Hedorfer, chief executive of the German National Tourist Board, interprets the numbers: “Due to this year’s early Easter holidays in March, a portion of the demand was moved from April into the first quarter.

“However, independent of this particular situation, the demand for worldwide travels to Germany still exceeded our expectations.

“March, 2016 was also the 77th month in a row, in which the volume of international overnights in Germany increased.”

The UK and Ireland continue to show strong growth: the period of Jan-March 2016 shows an increase of 9.3 per cent in overnight stays compared to 2015, for visitors from the UK and an 8.9 per cent increase for visitors from Ireland.