Tourism buoyed by Eurovision week

Lisbon is expected to welcome 37% more tourists than usual during the week it hosts the Eurovision Song Contest from 7-13 May.

The number was published by eDreams, the largest online travel agency in Europe, which states that the number almost doubled in comparison to the growth seen in Kiev which hosted Eurovision in 2017 (20%).

Flights expected for the week, with France as the departure point of origin, represent 29.2% of the passenger turnover from bookings with Paris, Lyon and Marseilles the main points of departure. Germany is the second origin with the most flights booked to Lisbon for that week (18%) while Spain is responsible for 10% of bookings to Lisbon’s Humberto Delgado airport.

Apart from the Eurovision factor, eDreams also revealed that other countries outside Europe with a growth in bookings to Lisbon for May include Brazil (+292%).

The same study found that due to lack of seats on planes due to Eurovision demand, airline companies have upped their prices by +18% to Lisbon from the main countries of origin, including flights from Austria, Spain, Luxembourg. For Eurovision week only, average ticket prices from Italy fell -10% in 2017.