Hotels, guest houses and campsites in the Netherlands enjoyed record numbers of bookings in 2023 as the tourist industry recovered from the pandemic.

The number of overseas visitors climbed by nearly a quarter to 20.4 million, while the total number of guests was 49.7 million, 8.1% more than the year before, according to figures from the statistics agency CBS.

Hotels accounted for the bulk of the increase, with 3.3 million more people booking stays than in 2022, while there were more modest rises in the number of people staying on campsites, holiday parks and in group accommodation.

Not all regions of the country saw a boost in bookings. Noord-Holland province led the way with a 16.9% increase, including 23.9% more foreign visitors. But Friesland, Drenthe and Noord-Brabant all saw tourist numbers decline.

Utrecht and Zeeland received fewer Dutch tourists, but this was offset by a larger increase in the number of foreign visitors. Cross-border tourist numbers were up by more than 30% in Overijssel, Drenthe and Gelderland.