Cyprus tourism sector shows signs of recovery in May 2026

Cyprus tourism is returning to a stable growth path following a challenging start to 2026 caused by regional instability. Deputy Minister of Tourism Kostas Koumis stated that while May 2026 revenue decreased by 4.8% compared to May 2025, it represented a 14.4% increase compared to the same period in 2024. These figures suggest that coordinated efforts between the government and the tourism industry are yielding positive results.

Regarding the first five months of 2026, total tourism revenue saw a 16.5% decline compared to 2025, though this represents a significant improvement from the 23.9% deficit recorded at the end of the first four months. Furthermore, revenue for the five-month period shows a 6.3% increase when compared to the same period in 2024. The Deputy Minister attributed the narrowing gap to the ongoing recovery of the sector, noting that the trend is expected to continue throughout the year.

The improvement of 7.4 percentage points in the five-month cumulative performance compared to the four-month data is cited as evidence of the sector's gradual stabilization. Officials remain optimistic that the performance gap relative to the previous year will continue to close as the peak season progresses.