Visit Finland Visitor Survey 2015

Visit Finland Studies 3

Finpro, Visit Finland Helsinki 2016

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

Non-resident visitors in Finland in 2015

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

Contents

Abstract ........................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 6 Introduction .................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 8

Trips to Finland ......................................................................................................................................................................................................... 11 Change in trips...................................................................................................................................................................................................... 13 Day trips, overnight stays and transit passengers ............................................................................................................................................. 14 Change in day trips and overnight stays............................................................................................................................................................. 16 Transit trips (Finland not main destination) ......................................................................................................................................................... 17 Destination countries of transit visitors ................................................................................................................................................................ 18 Finland as the main destination........................................................................................................................................................................... 20 Purpose of the trip: Finland as the main destination .......................................................................................................................................... 21 Number of leisure trips ......................................................................................................................................................................................... 23 Visited another country in addition to Finland ..................................................................................................................................................... 24 Other countries visited during trips ...................................................................................................................................................................... 25 Duration of trip....................................................................................................................................................................................................... 26 Bednights total ...................................................................................................................................................................................................... 27 Accommodation ................................................................................................................................................................................................... 28 Booking channels ................................................................................................................................................................................................. 29 Internet as the booking channel .......................................................................................................................................................................... 30 Expenditures in Finland ............................................................................................................................................................................................ 31 Change in expenditures ....................................................................................................................................................................................... 33 Products and services.......................................................................................................................................................................................... 34 Expenditure per trip .............................................................................................................................................................................................. 35 Change in expenditure per trip ............................................................................................................................................................................ 36 Expenditure per day ............................................................................................................................................................................................. 37 Shopping basket................................................................................................................................................................................................... 38

Destination in Finland................................................................................................................................................................................................ 39 Helsinki Metropolitan Area as main destination.................................................................................................................................................. 41 VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

Rest of Southern Finland as travel destination................................................................................................................................................... 42 Destination in other parts of Finland.................................................................................................................................................................... 43

What is interesting about Finland ............................................................................................................................................................................. 44 Finnish cultural attractions.................................................................................................................................................................................... 46 Finnish archipelago .............................................................................................................................................................................................. 47 Finnish cuisine ...................................................................................................................................................................................................... 48 Finnish sauna ....................................................................................................................................................................................................... 49 Wellness services and treatments ...................................................................................................................................................................... 50 Summer activities on land.................................................................................................................................................................................... 51 Summer activities on the water ........................................................................................................................................................................... 52 Finland’s popularity.................................................................................................................................................................................................... 53 How frequently in Finland .................................................................................................................................................................................... 54 First time in Finland .............................................................................................................................................................................................. 56 Would you recommend Finland .......................................................................................................................................................................... 57 Background information............................................................................................................................................................................................ 59 Total gross income of families.............................................................................................................................................................................. 60 Age and gender distribution................................................................................................................................................................................. 61 Occupational distribution...................................................................................................................................................................................... 62 Travel companions ............................................................................................................................................................................................... 63 Area of residence in home country .......................................................................................................................................................................... 64 Trips from Russia.................................................................................................................................................................................................. 65 Trips from China ................................................................................................................................................................................................... 66 Trips from Japan................................................................................................................................................................................................... 67 Trips from Germany ............................................................................................................................................................................................. 68 Trips from the UK.................................................................................................................................................................................................. 69

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

6

Abstract

FINLAND RECEIVED 8.7 MILLION NON-RESIDENT VISITORS

In 2015, non-resident visitors made altogether 8.7 million trips to Finland, i.e. 9 per cent fewer than a year earlier. Trips by Russian residents fell by close to one third while trips by people from other countries were up by 6 per cent. Despite this, Russian residents account for approximately one third of trips made to Finland. Trips by residents of China and Japan increased by more than a third: People arriving from Japan made more day trips in particular, while in the case of Chinese visitors, the increase resulted, for the most part, from visitors who stayed overnight. Altogether 2.5 million day trips were made to Finland while overnight trips came to 4.9 million. In addition, transit passengers at Helsinki airport made altogether 1.3 million trips through Finland. The biggest relative increase compared with 2014 came from the number of overnight trips from Asia to Finland. Both day and overnight trips from Russia continued to decrease.

While for most visitors arriving from Europe and Latin America, Finland is the main destination, for visitors arriving from North America, Asia and Australia, Finland is typically a transit destination. The largest number of transit visitors arrived from China, Russia and Japan; approximately one third of a million from each country. When discounting travellers changing airplane at Helsinki airport, altogether 0.5 million one-day transit visits and 0.7 million overnight transit visits were made. Finland is often used as a gateway to its neighbouring countries Sweden, Estonia and Russia. In addition to transit visitors from Asia travelling on to Italy, Spain, Germany, France and the UK, some visitors from countries such as Sweden and Germany also travel through Finland on their way to Asia.

FINLAND MAIN DESTINATION FOR MORE THAN SIX MILLION TRIPS

Finland was the main destination for more than two thirds of all trips made to Finland or through Finland. Altogether 6.2 million journeys like this were made over the course of the year. Approximately two out of five were made by Russian residents and Russians accounted for as many as three out of four day trips with Finland as the main destination. Additionally, day trips were made from Estonia and Sweden and somewhat also by tourists arriving from China. Overnight trips with Finland as the main destination came to 4.2 million. This corresponds with about half of all trips made to Finland. Half of the trips were made by a resident of Russia, Sweden or Estonia and one out of ten were made from Asia.

Holidays with Finland as the main destination came to 2.0 million. In addition, 1.4 million shopping trips were made to Finland of which Russian residents accounted for more than nine out of ten. Day visitors from Estonia also made some 50 thousand shopping trips. Visits to friends and relatives

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

7

came to 1.1 million of which those by Swedish residents made up just over one quarter. Of trips made from China, Japan and Australia with Finland as the main destination at least half were leisure trips, as was also the case with visitors arriving from Russia to Finland for overnight stays.

INCREASE IN BEDNIGHTS

Non-resident visitors stayed in Finland for close to 30 million nights last year, which is one per cent more than in 2014. The number of bednights increased although overnight stays by Russian residents fell by 3.5 million nights. Day trips from several countries decreased and overnight visits increased. A small group of visitors accounted for the majority of the bednights: Approximately one out of five tourists spent at least six days in Finland but they accounted for 83% of nights spent in Finland over the course of the year.

EXPENDITURES OF VISITORS ARRIVING FROM ASIA INCREASED

Visitors arriving from outside Finland used EUR 2.6 billion in 2015, i.e. EUR 210 million (–7%) less than a year earlier. The greatest decrease in expenditures (–EUR 380 million) occurred among visitors from Russia, totalling just two fifths of what it was in the record year of 2013. On the other hand, the expenditures of travellers arriving from China were up by EUR 120 million and that of visitors from Japan by EUR 100 million.

Consumption by people arriving from Russia still makes up approximately one fifth while their share of trips made to Finland is one third. Tourists from China and Japan use altogether just over one fifth of the money spent by foreign visitors in Finland over the course of the year. Visitors from Germany, Sweden and Estonia were the next largest groups in terms of expenditures. Expenditures by visitors other than Russian residents increased 9% from a year earlier.

EUR 0.8 billion was spent on products and food and EUR 1.8 billion on services. Tourists arriving from Russia accounted for close to two fifths of product purchases and Chinese tourists for one seventh. All in all, product purchases decreased. The main reason for this was the low market price of oil which weakens the value of the rouble against the euro and reduces the number of shopping tourists from Russia. Visitors from Russia purchased EUR 240 million less in products and food than a year earlier. At the same time, however, Chinese tourists increased their product purchases by EUR 51 million.

EXPENDITURE PER TRIP UNCHANGED

Visitors to Finland spent an average of EUR 300 per trip when including accommodation etc. paid in advance. This is four euros more than a year earlier and one euro less than in 2012. Expenditure per trip to Finland has increased the most among visitors arriving from Asia and Latin America but also among people arriving from certain European countries. The most money spent per visitor is used by visitors from outside Europe and the least by tourists from Finland’s neighbouring countries. The expenditure of Chinese residents per trip was the highest; almost four times that of Russian residents.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

8

Introduction

PURPOSE OF THE SURVEY  The TAK Border Survey, of which the Visit Finland Visitor Survey is part of, is an on-going research project that started in 1997, the purpose of which is to provide data on non-resident visitors to Finland. The survey helps to identify the annual number of tourists to Finland and the amount of money left by them in Finland.  In addition, the study provides information on the profiles of incoming tourists from different countries: how long people stay in Finland, where they stay, why they come to Finland, how often they come to Finland, what they do during the trip, where they go during the journey and what they do in Finland. CONDUCT OF THE SURVEY  The survey is carried out year-round on different days and at different times by interviewing tourists aged over 14, residing abroad and exiting Finland at the border stations.  The interviewees are picked using equally spaced sampling, e.g., by selecting every fifth passenger.  Interview dates are selected at random for the entire year, except in Lapland where the interviews are carried out during the winter season.  Interviews are carried out at the Helsinki and Turku ports, at the Helsinki, Turku, Tampere, Rovaniemi and Kittilä airports, as well as at the eastern border in Vaalimaa, Nuijamaa, Vainikkala, Imatra and Niirala. At the eastern border, the heavy goods traffic is not taken into account, and at the ports of Helsinki, international cruise ships are discounted. Helsinki airport transit passengers are, however, included in the results. The survey covers 92% of the eastern border traffic through the five border stations included in the survey.  In the report, the number of trips corresponds to the number of foreign tourists who left Finland in 2015 via the border stations involved in the survey.  In 2015, altogether 61,145 visitors leaving Finland were approached. Of these 48% lived in Finland. This amount was 13 percentage points less than a year earlier because interviews were no longer conducted at Helsinki airport’s security gates, instead they were conducted at the departure gates. Of foreign visitors, less than 2.0% were under 15 years of age and 15.9% refused to respond to questions, did not have time to respond or were not interviewed for some other reason. Altogether 21,397 completed interviews were performed during the year.  Tutkimus- ja Analysointikeskus TAK Oy is responsible for the practical implementation of the survey.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

9

RELIABILITY OF THE RESULTS  The results are weighted to match the actual number of passengers at airports, ports and the eastern border, which are included in the survey. As regards the Helsinki airport and ports, the passenger volume is weighted according to the travel destination (country). In addition, the data on the eastern border has been weighted, based on customs statistics and separate vehicle counts, to reflect the real distributions of passenger cars, buses and minibuses (7–16 passengers).  Travellers who are working in Finland or were on a work/study trip that lasted for more than three months or those who have visited Finland more than 50 times a year have been removed from the results. Thus people visiting Finland weekly, those working permanently in Finland and long business trips and exchange students have been excluded from the results.  The error margin resulting from the random sample of the survey results for the percentages of the entire material is at most ± 0.7 percentage points when including all tourists. In country-specific results the sample sizes vary between 153 and 8,463, resulting in country-specific margins of error ranging between ±1.1 and 7.9 percentage points. COMPARABILITY OF RESULTS  Data missing for 2015 (respondents who did not take part in the survey but their nationality was known) was supplemented so that the respondents who were not interviewed were assumed to correspond with the distribution of the visitors who gave interviews. In order to retain comparability with the previous year, the results from 2014 were recalculated using the same method. Additionally, for 2015, much more specific statistics were achieved for ship traffic, concerning the proportion of car passengers and other visitors, among others. Also, deviations resulting from this were taken into account when comparing results in the report to 2014.  In 2014, separate questions were presented in terms of shopping, accommodation, restaurant and other services. In addition, a separate question on total consumption during the trip was also asked. These did not, however, correspond with one another entirely. In 2015, a separate question concerning total expenditures was not asked, instead total expenditures were calculated by adding together shopping, accommodation and similar expenditures.  Tilastokeskus (Statistics Finland) and Matkailun edistämiskeskus (Visit Finland) conducted its own Border Survey from 1998 until 2012. TAK Border Research was started in 1997, but initially it focused on Russians traveling in Finland. In 2014, TAK Border Research was extended to cover all nationalities.  In 2012, Statistics Finland also carried out interviews at the Tornio and Karigasniemi border stations. Following this, no interviews have been conducted at these border stations due to the low number of visitors. Instead, interviews were conducted at the Imatra border station where Statistics Finland has not previously carried out interviews. Close to one fifth of Russian tourists visiting Finland travel through the Imatra border station.  In contrast to the surveys carried out until 2012, also transit passengers are interviewed at Helsinki airport, whose proportion is large particularly among travellers arriving from East Asia due to Finnair’s diverse connections to Asia. VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

10

TERMS TRIP  Trips describe the number of non-residents leaving Finland. Trips do not, however, include people working in Finland, or work/study trips lasting more than three months or people visiting Finland more than 50 times during the year. TRANSIT PASSENGERS  Transit passengers are travellers leaving Finland who only switched planes at Helsinki airport and did not leave the airport during the trip. TRANSIT VISITORS  For the purposes of this survey, transit visitors are visitors for whom Finland is not the main destination. Their main destination is thus elsewhere but they travel there through Finland. Transit visitors may, however, spend time in and stay the night in Finland before continuing their trips.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

11

Trips to Finland

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

12

Trips to Finland

A total of 8.7 million trips were made to Finland. 3 000 2 500

thousand trips

2 000 1 500

2 740

1 000 500 0

786 824

418 292 200 97 121 95 160 101 65 55 81 97 45 38 29 95

522 130 113 37 71 185 69 84 454 194 74 284 32 92 6

In 2015, non-resident visitors made altogether 8.69 million trips to Finland, i.e. 9 per cent fewer than a year earlier. Visits by Russian residents fell by close to one third (−30%) while visits by people from other countries increased by 6 per cent. Despite this, Russian residents account for approximately one third (32%) of trips made to Finland. Trips do not include people working in Finland, or work/study trips lasting more than three months or people visiting Finland more than 50 times during the year. Altogether 0.50 million journeys like this were made over the course of the year. VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

13

Change in trips The number of trips fell by 9 per cent. 60%

change from previous year

40% 20% 0% -20%

-9%

11%

-9%

6% 0% 2%

9% -23%

-17%

3%

36% -18% -25%

8% -30%

-44%

26%

39%

52% 10%

53% 50%

32% 35% 35%

-30%

-8%

-11%

-40% -60%

Trips by residents of China and Japan increased by more than a third compared to 2014. The increase took place through both Helsinki airport and Helsinki port. Particularly day trips among Japanese visitors increased while among Chinese tourists the increase occurred primarily in the number of visitors staying overnight. Residents of Poland have travelled more than earlier particularly through Turku airport through which there are, currently, up to seven flights a week to Poland.

Travel by non-residents to Finland has increased mainly through Helsinki airport. Among Estonian residents have, however, the greatest increase was in boat trips to Helsinki. Trips by residents of Sweden have decreased through the Port of Helsinki but have increased through the Port of Turku. VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

14

Day trips, overnight stays and transit passengers Altogether 2.5 million day trips and 4.9 overnight trips took place. 1 600 1 400 1 200 thousand trips

1 000 800

Overnight stay, Finland main destination

Overnight stay, Finland not main destination Day trip, Finland main destination

Day trip, Finland not main destination HKI airport transit passenger

600 400 200

0

Number of transit passengers calculated for the whole year based on the material for July-December

With the exception of Lithuania, Finland is usually the main destination for visitors arriving from Europe and Latin America. For visitors arriving from North America, Asia and Australia, a country other than Finland is usually the main destination.

The largest number of travellers for whom Finland is not the main destination arrived from China, Russia and Japan; approximately one third of a million from each country. Altogether 2.48 million day trips and 4.93 million overnight trips took place. In addition, transit passengers at Helsinki airport made a total of 1.28 million trips through Finland. VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

15

Day trips, overnight stays and transit passengers Estonia Sweden Germany United Kingdom France Denmark Italy Netherlands Spain Poland Belgium Lithuania Latvia Other EU countries Russia Norway Switzerland Other European countries United States Canada Latin America Japan China South Korea India Rest of Asia Australia TOTAL

Helsinki airport transit passenger 81,000 122,000 47,000 33,000 36,000 25,000 14,000 10,000 33,000 16,000 10,000 17,000 16,000 6,000 105,000 23,000 11,000 8,000 32,000 18,000 5,000 193,000 197,000 98,000 26,000 39,000 30,000 1,276,000

On day trip, Finland not main destination 41,000 14,000 22,000 6,000 5,000 2,000 4,000 3,000 4,000 6,000 5,000 16,000 5,000 7,000 155,000 26,000 10,000 8,000 20,000 3,000 4,000 75,000 27,000 14,000 4,000 18,000 4,000 534,000

On day trip, Finland main destination 170,000 94,000 22,000 16,000 8,000 9,000 5,000 3,000 8,000 4,000 3,000 7,000 7,000 1,000 1,439,000 5,000 3,000 14,000 6,000 5,000 1,000 18,000 45,000 22,000 4,000 14,000 3,000 1,948,000

Overnight stay, Finland not main destination 24,000 19,000 25,000 43,000 13,000 5,000 20,000 8,000 18,000 5,000 4,000 11,000 1,000 21,000 63,000 9,000 6,000 6,000 47,000 16,000 32,000 45,000 106,000 35,000 13,000 74,000 29,000 728,000

The table shows only countries of whose residents at least 100 have been interviewed. VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

Overnight stay, Finland main destination 469,000 575,000 303,000 194,000 138,000 55,000 77,000 71,000 97,000 70,000 43,000 29,000 68,000 60,000 978,000 68,000 83,000 35,000 81,000 28,000 42,000 122,000 148,000 24,000 27,000 139,000 25,000 4,203,000

16

Change in day trips and overnight stays Within overnight trips, trips from Asia increased most in relative terms. 140% 120%

change from previous year

100%

80%

Day trips (incl. transit trips) Overnight trips

60% 40% 20%

0%

-20% -40% -60%

* = trips to Finland decreased

The biggest relative increase compared with 2014 came from the number of overnight trips from Asia to Finland. Overnight trips made from Sweden also increased although trips decreased overall. The same applies to visitors arriving from South Korea, while the number of day trips from Belgium and Lithuania grew. Finland was the transit point to China, Japan and Russia for passengers arriving from Belgium while people from Lithuania travelled through Finland to reach Asian countries as well as the UK and the Nordic countries. Both day and overnight trips from Russia continued to decrease. VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

17

Transit trips (Finland not main destination) In this survey transit visitors are visitors for whom Finland is not the main destination. 500 450

27

100

197

50

0

63

45 75 193

35 14 98

155 74 18 39

105

70%

Share of transit visitors (incl. airport transit passengers)

% of all trips

thousand trips

106

200 150

80%

Helsinki airport transit passengers

350 250

90%

One-day transit visitor

400 300

100%

Overnight transit visitor

60% 50%

19 14

122

24 41 81

40% 25 22 47

30% 47 20 32

43 6 33

29 4 30

20% 10% 0%

Number of transit passengers calculated for whole year based on material for July-December

Approximately two thirds of trips made from China, Japan, South Korea and Australia to Finland are transit trips. Some of the same-day visitors stopping over transfer in Helsinki from an airplane to a ship or vice versa and, at the very least, travel through central Helsinki. People arrive from Russia by car and train to Helsinki from where they continue their trips by plane or ship.

Transit passengers are visitors who only change planes in Helsinki and thus do not leave the airport. This group thus describes the group of visitors who might be persuaded to stop to experience something in Finland, with flight transfer times allowing. Altogether 0.53 million day-long transit visits and 0.73 overnight trips involving a transit took place. In addition, airport transit passengers made 1.28 million trips through Finland. Overnight transit visitors spent an average of 3.8 nights per trip in Finland. VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

18

Destination countries of transit visitors

The image shows the most popular destinations for transit visitors (Finland not main destination), i.e. their next destination after Finland. The destinations in the image cover 98% of all trips made by transit visitors through Finland. In 2015, altogether 2.54 million trips were made by transit visitors, i.e. just under a third (29%) of trips were transits. Return trips by people living in each country have been excluded from the percentages. Spain includes the Canary Islands. VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

19

Destination countries of transit visitors Country of residence

Trips by transit visitors

Return journeys to country of residence Most popular destination

China

Japan

South Korea

Other Asia

Russia

Sweden

Estonia

Germany

United States

United Kingdom

Australia

330,000

314,000

147,000

131,000

324,000

155,000

147,000

93,000

98,000

82,000

63,000

40%

56%

40%

47%

40%

42%

37%

8%

22%

Sweden 15%

Spain 7%

Spain 18%

Spain 10%

United States 11%

United Kingdom 12%

No direct flights

Estonia 24%

Sweden 24%

Sweden 26%

Germany 37%

Italy 7%

Germany 5%

Sweden 5%

Estonia 7%

Japan 7%

Germany 4%

Sweden 6%

Russia 15%

China 10%

Russia 10%

Estonia 3%

Italy 3%

United Kingdom 4%

Denmark 6%

Switzerland 3%

2nd most popular destination

United Kingdom 8%

4th most popular destination

France 3%

3rd most popular destination

5th most popular destination

Estonia 7%

Sweden 3%

Italy 7%

Russia 5%

Singapore 10%/Thailand 3% Sweden 21% Russia 16%

Sweden 9%

Germany 6%

Germany 5%

Estonia 12%

Denmark 6%

Italy 3%

Thailand 8%

Estonia 6%

Sweden 6%

Russia 4%

Russia 10%

Denmark 6% China 4%

Estonia 17%

United Kingdom 7%

Denmark 3%

Estonia 13%

Russia 8% Japan 5%

Estonia 24%

Sweden 6% China 4%

The table shows the next destination for transit visitors (Finland not main destination) after Finland. The trip may also continue on from the country in question as the visitor may visit several countries during the same trip.

Finland is often used as a gateway to its neighbouring countries Sweden, Estonia and Russia. In addition to transit visitors from Asia travelling on to Italy, Spain, Germany, France and the UK, some visitors from countries such as Sweden and Germany also travel through Finland on their way to Asia.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

20

Finland as the main destination

Finland was the main destination for more than two thirds of all trips made to Finland or through Finland. 1 600

Overnight trips

1 400

Day trips

1 200 thousand trips

1 000 800

1 439

600

400 469 575 200

170 94 0

978 303

194 138

55 77 71 97 70 43 41 29 68 27 25 21 60

148 139 68 83 15 35 81 28 42 122 45 24 27 22 25 3

Figures marked with an asterix (*) are indicative

Finland was the main destination for more than two thirds (71%) of all trips made to Finland or through Finland. Altogether 6.15 million journeys like this were made over the course of the year. Approximately two out of five were made by Russian residents and Russians accounted for up to three out of four day trips. Additionally, day trips were made from Estonia and Sweden and somewhat also by tourists arriving from China. Day trips totalled less than two thousand per month in the case of other visitors.

Overnight trips came to 4.20 million, which means that close to half (48%) of all trips to Finland were overnight trips with Finland as the main destination. Half of the trips were made by a resident of Russia, Sweden or Estonia and one out of ten were made from Asia.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

21

Purpose of the trip: Finland as the main destination 2.0 million leisure trips and 1.4 million shopping trips. % of trips, Finland main destination

100 % 90 % 80 % 70 % 60 % 50 % 40 % 30 % 20 % 10 % 0%

11% 16%

Other reason (studies, tours etc.) Business trip

18%

Shopping trip

22%

Visit to friends or relatives Leisure trip

33%

With regards to trips with Finland as the main destination (6.15 million trips), leisure trips accounted for 2.03 million. In addition, 1.35 million shopping trips were made to Finland of which Russian residents accounted for the majority (94%). Day visitors from Estonia also made some 48 thousand shopping trips. Visits to friends and relatives came to 1.12 million of which those by Swedish residents made up just over one quarter. Of trips made from China, Japan and Australia with Finland as the main destination at least half were leisure trips, as was also the case with visitors arriving from Russia to Finland for overnight stays. The most business trips, in absolute numbers, were made from Sweden, Estonia, Russia, Germany and the UK. The relative share of business trips was the highest among visitors arriving from India. For the most part, however, the share of people arriving on business trips from Europe was higher than among other groups. VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

22

Purpose of the trip: Finland as the main destination Estonia Sweden Germany United Kingdom France Denmark Italy Netherlands Spain Poland Belgium Lithuania Latvia Other EU countries Russia Norway Switzerland Other European countries United States Canada Latin America Japan China South Korea India Rest of Asia Australia TOTAL

Leisure trip 227,000 126,000 121,000 90,000 40,000 14,000 33,000 12,000 41,000 17,000 14,000 7,000 31,000 12,000 842,000 15,000 39,000 14,000 27,000 8,000 15,000 88,000 95,000 12,000 5,000 67,000 18,000 2,031,000

Visit to friends or relatives 182,000 311,000 81,000 51,000 37,000 14,000 16,000 20,000 19,000 17,000 9,000 8,000 8,000 12,000 172,000 17,000 20,000 10,000 23,000 11,000 7,000 9,000 10,000 2,000 4,000 34,000 5,000 1,121,000

Shopping trip 44,000 1,000 1,000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,198,000 0 0 6,000 0 0 0 12,000 4,000 0 0 5,000 0 1,353,000

Business trip 118,000 126,000 87,000 55,000 28,000 30,000 25,000 33,000 28,000 25,000 19,000 14,000 21,000 25,000 99,000 32,000 15,000 13,000 25,000 8,000 8,000 10,000 30,000 10,000 17,000 22,000 4,000 972,000

The table shows only countries of whose residents at least 100 have been interviewed.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

Other reason (studies, tours etc.) 68,000 104,000 35,000 15,000 40,000 7,000 8,000 10,000 17,000 13,000 3,000 7,000 15,000 12,000 105,000 8,000 11,000 6,000 11,000 7,000 12,000 21,000 53,000 23,000 5,000 24,000 2,000 673,000

23

Number of leisure trips

The number of leisure trips to Finland, with Finland as the main destination, totalled 2.0 million. 900 800

Overnight transit visit (Finland not main destination)

600

Leisure trip (Finland main destination)

One-day transit visit (Finland not main destination)

thousand trips

700 500 400 300 200 100 0

24 41

797

25 22 43 227 126 121 90 19

63

40

14

33

12

41

17

14

7

31

12

155

15

39

14

27

8

15

45 106 75 27 88 95

12

5

74 18 67

18

The number of leisure trips to Finland, with Finland as the main destination, totalled 2.03 million. In addition, when Helsinki transit passengers are not included, 1.26 million trips by transit visitor were made during which visitors spent time in Finland. These trips are also, in a way, leisure trips, but are different in that Finland is not the main destination. These altogether 3.29 million trips correspond to almost two fifths (38%) of all trips made to Finland. Approximately one third of the trips were made from Russia, followed by trips from Estonia, China, Japan, Germany, Sweden and the UK. Compared to leisure trips, transit trips account for the majority of trips by visitors from outside Europe: Finland is often visited as part of a longer journey whose main destination is somewhere else.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

24

Visited another country in addition to Finland Two in five trips made to Finland also involved the visitor visiting another country. 100%

90% 80%

% of all trips

70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%

43%

24% 23%

46%

40%

52%

44%

55%

41%

65%

80% 42% 47%

57%

53% 55%

46%

57%

84% 76% 80%

90% 90% 89% 86%

74%

90%

16%

As the transit trips show, visitors arriving from outside Europe very often also visit other countries in addition to Finland during their trip. On the contrary, only about a quarter of trips made from neighbouring countries Estonia and Sweden include other destinations and only one in every six trips by people arriving from Russia. Visitors visit other countries on altogether two fifths (43%) of trips made to Finland.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

25

Other countries visited during trips

In 2015, altogether 3.74 million trips were made to Finland, during which another country was also visited. One third of the trips, i.e. 1.28 million, were trips made by Helsinki airport transit passengers. Trips to the Nordic countries totalled 1.30 million, 1.01 million were made to the Baltics, 380 thousand to Russia, 1.41 million to elsewhere in Europe and 670 thousand outside Europe.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

26

Duration of trip Estonia Sweden Germany United Kingdom France Denmark Italy Netherlands Spain Poland Belgium Lithuania Latvia Other EU countries Russia Norway Switzerland Other European countries United States Canada Lat. America Japan China South Korea India Rest of Asia Australia TOTAL

All trips

786,000 824,000 418,000 292,000 200,000 97,000 121,000 95,000 160,000 101,000 65,000 81,000 97,000 95,000 2,740,000 130,000 113,000 71,000 185,000 69,000 84,000 454,000 522,000 194,000 74,000 284,000 92,000 8,689,000

Helsinki airport transit passenger 10% 15% 11% 11% 18% 26% 12% 11% 21% 16% 15% 22% 17% 7% 4% 18% 10% 11% 17% 25% 6% 42% 38% 50% 35% 14% 33% 15%

Other day trip 27% 13% 10% 8% 6% 12% 8% 6% 7% 10% 13% 29% 12% 8% 58% 23% 11% 31% 14% 12% 6% 21% 14% 19% 11% 11% 8% 29%

2 days 16% 19% 12% 12% 7% 15% 12% 13% 9% 7% 10% 16% 6% 6% 12% 12% 7% 6% 11% 16% 20% 11% 17% 13% 12% 12% 6% 13%

3 days 16% 19% 14% 13% 12% 13% 13% 18% 10% 9% 12% 4% 24% 13% 10% 14% 10% 12% 16% 7% 17% 6% 7% 7% 5% 15% 8% 12%

4–5 days 14% 18% 18% 24% 18% 19% 25% 24% 20% 27% 19% 12% 25% 21% 8% 15% 24% 20% 18% 16% 15% 10% 12% 7% 10% 11% 23% 14%

6 days or more 17% 16% 34% 32% 38% 14% 30% 28% 33% 31% 31% 18% 16% 45% 8% 19% 39% 20% 24% 24% 36% 10% 14% 4% 27% 37% 23% 18%

The table shows only countries of whose residents at least 100 have been interviewed.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

Average duration of trip (nights) 2.8 2.9 7.0 3.9 6.1 2.7 4.5 6.1 6.8 8.5 4.5 4.4 2.8 9.6 1.1 2.8 5.5 4.9 4.5 4.4 9.4 1.4 3.8 1.2 6.6 9.1 3.0 3.4

Bednights total

2,231,000 2,399,000 2,938,000 1,137,000 1,214,000 258,000 540,000 577,000 1,096,000 858,000 290,000 356,000 274,000 914,000 3,072,000 363,000 621,000 343,000 841,000 303,000 794,000 642,000 1,984,000 235,000 485,000 2,586,000 273,000 29,849,000

27

Bednights total

Non-resident visitors spent close to 30 million nights in Finland. 7 000

2014

thousand nights

6 000

2015

5 000 4 000 3 000 2 000 1 000 0

3 072 2 938 2 586 2 2312 399 1 984 1 1371 214 258 540 577 1 096 858 290 356 274 914 363 621 343 841 303 794 642 235 485 273

Non-resident visitors spent 29.85 million nights in Finland last year, which is one per cent more than in 2014. The number of bednights spent by visitors increased although overnight stays by Russian residents fell by 3.5 million nights. The number of bednights is affected to a large extent by the relative development of day and overnight trips. Compared to 2014, day trips by visitors arriving from several countries decreased and overnight visits increased. The majority of bednights were accumulated by visitors staying in Finland for extended periods: approximately one in five visitors spent at least six days in Finland but they accounted for 83% of nights spent in Finland over the course of the year. Those visiting Finland for longer periods often stayed in their own or rented flats or with relatives, in which case they are not included in official accommodation statistics. VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

28

Accommodation

A third of bednights were spent with acquaintances and a quarter at hotels. 100 %

90 % 17%

Other (incl. flat or cottage owned by visitor)

70 %

Friends or relatives

% of bednights

80 % 60 %

35%

50 %

Rental flat (incl. Airbnb)

40 % 12% 30 % 14%

Camping area, hostel or rented cottage

20 %

10 % 23%

Hotel or motel

0%

Just over a third of the approximately 30 million nights spent in Finland were spent with friends and relatives and close to a quarter in hotels and motels. Visitors spent an average of twice as many nights with acquaintances than at hotels. VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

29

Booking channels

The internet has increased in popularity as a booking channel for travellers. 0%

10%

Internet Visited tour operator’s or travel agent’s service point On location at hotel or transportation company service point

Phone call or email to tour operator or travel agent Phone call or email to hotel or transportation company Employer Other channel

14% 9%

20%

30%

65% 68%

% of trips 40% 50%

60%

70%

3% 2%

80%

90%

100%

2014

8% 4%

2015

3% 2%

10%

13% 11%

Accommodation or tickets are more and more often booked through the internet as traditional channels lose their popularity. Particularly visits to tour operators’ or travel agents’ service points or calls to them have decreased compared to 2014. The employer option was added to the survey in 2015. The proportion of business trips was 11%.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

30

Internet as the booking channel

In nearly every country, in the case of more than every other trip, the trip or accommodation is booked online. 100%

90% 80%

% of trips

70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20%

76% 71% 68% 72% 66% 65% 67% 63% 65% 63%

56%

10%

62%

71% 44%

48%

64% 63%

71%

65% 65%

77%

71%

59% 63% 56%

45%

59% 55%

0%

For nearly every country, in the case of more than every other trip, the trip or accommodation is booked online. Passengers arriving from Australia and Asia used the internet less often than others for booking trips. Instead they visited tour operators’ or travel agents’ service points to make bookings.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

31

Expenditures in Finland

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

32

Expenditures in Finland EUR 2.6 billion was spent in Finland. 500 450 400

EUR million

350 300 250

478

200

343

150 100 50

0

116 137

163

94 106

20 45 49 65 44 23 22 13 20 16 9 12 47

80 35 68 8 28 22 54

201 44 39

147

19 36 3

Visitors arriving from outside Finland spent EUR 2.61 billion in 2015, i.e. EUR 210 million less than a year earlier. Expenditures by people arriving from Russia made up some one fifth while their share of trips made to Finland is one third. Tourists from China and Japan spent altogether just over one fifth of the money used by foreign visitors in Finland over the course of the year. Visitors from Germany, Sweden and Estonia were the next largest groups in terms of expenditures. VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

33

Change in expenditures Expenditures in Finland fell by 7 per cent. 200 100

EUR million

0 -100

-5 -40 -7 -28

27

-22

9 10

-26

24

-7

1

-34 -6

6

-4

2

-49

-2

30 0

8

-4 -3

21

100 128

11 18 51

-12 -24 -4

-378

-200 -300 -400

Expenditures by non-resident visitors in Finland fell by 7% compared to the previous year. The greatest decrease in expenditures (–EUR 380 billion) occurred among visitors from Russia, totalling just two fifths of what it was in the record year of 2013. On the other hand, the expenditures of travellers arriving from China increased by EUR 120 million (advance expenses EUR +48 million) and that of visitors from Japan by EUR 100 million (advance expenses EUR +72 million). A large portion of the increase in money was already paid in advance prior to the visitors’ arrival in Finland. Overnight trips from China have increased, i.e. visitors buying accommodation and other services in advance has grown. Visitors arriving from Japan have paid larger sums of money in advance. Expenditures in Finland by visitors other than Russian residents increased 9% from a year earlier. VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

34

Products and services

Visitors spent EUR 0.8 billion on products and food and EUR 1.9 billion on services. 500

Services

450 400

162

350 EUR million

Products

300 250

224

200 150 100 50

0

130 66 95

315 82 91

55 34 50 42 33 9 18 41 42 13 7 10 33 13 16 3 5 7 10 10 19 4 4 16 4 3 2 2 13 4 18

160 69 55 45 40 4 17 25 10 13 4 11 11 17 6 9

119

113 32 32 34 32 3 13 12 7 7 4 1

Non-resident visitors spent EUR 0.83 billion on products in Finland and EUR 1.78 billion on services. The proportion of product purchases of the total amount of money spent was thus about one third (32%). Services include accommodation and restaurant services, transportation and culture and recreation services. A third of the services were already paid for prior to arrival in Finland. Tourists arriving from Russia accounted for close to two fifths of product purchases and Chinese tourists for one seventh.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

35

Expenditure per trip Visitors used an average of EUR 300 per trip. 700 € 600 €

EUR per trip

500 € 400 € 300 € 200 € 100 €

0€

300

390 148 166

323

532 208

376

516

406 438

353

604

491 165 207

174

267

395 434

645 321

442

656

528 519 225

398

Visitors to Finland used an average of EUR 300 per trip including accommodation paid in advance and other similar advance expenses. The most money spent per visitor is used by visitors from outside Europe and the least by tourists from Finland’s neighbouring countries. The expenditure of Chinese residents per trip was the highest; almost four times that of Russian residents.

In 2014, separate questions were presented in terms of shopping, accommodation, restaurant and other services. In addition, a separate question on total consumption during the trip was also asked. These did not, however, correspond with one another entirely. In 2015, a separate question concerning total expenditures was not asked, instead total expenditures were calculated by adding together shopping, accommodation and similar expenditures. VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

36

Change in expenditure per trip Expenditure per trip was on a par with the previous year’s level. 300 €

EUR/trip

200 € 100 €

0€

-100 € -200 € -300 €

177

124

44

4 -23 -30 -40

-96

183

158

-127

19 -21 -178

8 -69

-280

122

-46 -38

143

102

70

86

9

-65 -238

-183

Expenditure per trip to Finland has increased the most among travellers arriving from Asia and Latin America but also among people arriving from certain European countries. Advance payments increased among visitors arriving from China as did expenditures on purchases. Same-day visitors for whom Finland was not the main destination less frequently buy services from Finland in advance. In the case of Chinese visitors, overnight trips have increased and thus the number of visitors having made advance payments is larger than before. People arriving from Japan have spent larger amounts on accommodation and other services prior to arriving in Finland. Overnight trips made to Finland from Switzerland, Poland and France have increased but the number of day trips has fallen, which means that trips are longer on average and thus the expenditure per trip is larger. Day-long transits from Lithuania have increased while overnight trips have decreased. For those arriving from Australia and Spain, the average length of trips has fallen while for visitors from the Netherlands it has grown. Visits by Canadians to relatives have increased and thus the use of money for accommodation has decreased.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

37

EUR/travel day

Expenditure per day 200 € 180 € 160 € 140 € 120 € 100 € 80 € 60 € 40 € 20 € 0€

66

38

43

49

66

75

57

69

73

52

46

65

31

54

46

82

70

93

183 67

78

60

62

137

102

70

51

100

Expenditure per day has been calculated in the diagram by dividing the amount of money used in Finland during the year by the number of travel days. Thus, all visitors arriving from Japan spent EUR 183 per travel day spent in Finland while Chinese residents correspondingly spent EUR 137. This means that if visitors arriving from Japan increase their travel by a thousand travel days, the amount of money spent in Finland will correspondingly rise by EUR 183 thousand. Expenditures by visitors arriving from China would grow by a similar EUR 137 thousand. In terms of visitors from Japan, the addition of a thousand travel days would, however, require 414 visitors while just 208 visitors from China would be required for the same, i.e. people arriving from China spent more money during their trips. The larger number of Japanese visitors results mainly from the fact that people who have booked travel packages and trips have used larger sums of money to do so than earlier.

However, the diagram must not be interpreted to mean the average expenditure per visitor, in which case the impact on the average of visitors staying in Finland for one day and a hundred days would be the same. Instead, in the diagram’s figures, visitors staying a hundred days have a one hundred times higher impact on the daily expenditure, having, after all, spent one hundred times longer in Finland. As expenditures per day decrease as the trip lengthens, daily expenditures per visitor are larger than expenditures per travel day. Due to the fact that Chinese visitors staying in Finland for long periods use more money per day in Finland than Japanese visitors on longer stays, the average daily expenditure of visitors from China per visitor is actually higher than for Japanese visitors. VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

38

Shopping basket

A third of the travel budget is used for product purchases. 160 € 140 €

2012

120 € EUR/trip

100 € 80 €

140

60 € 40 € 20 € 0€

18

53

67

48

53

51

57

47

44

97

2014

2015

94 21

23

23

17

25

22

Altogether, visitors used EUR 300 per trip, which is four euros more than a year earlier and one euro less than in 2012. Money spent on shopping and food has decreased as a whole, which resulted from the low global market price of oil. This weakens the value of the rouble against the euro and reduces the number of shopping tourists from Russia. Visitors from Russia purchased EUR 237 million less in products and food than a year earlier. At the same time, however, Chinese tourists have increased their product purchases by EUR 51 million. Services paid in advance have particularly increased due to visitors arriving from China. Other purchases include, among other things, cultural services, which amounted to an average of six euros per trip in 2015 and recreational services, which came to an average of nine euros per trip.

The proportion of product and food purchases is approximately one third (31%), the proportion of advance expenses just over one fifth (22%) with accommodation and restaurants accounting for about one sixth of the money used during trips.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

39

Destination in Finland

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

40

Destination in Finland

The image shows the main destinations of Russian visitors and other non-resident visitors in Finland. Russian visitors headed mainly towards the east of the Helsinki-Joensuu axle while other visitors travelled mostly to the Helsinki-Turku-Tampere region. Border stations on northern roads were not included in the survey. Interviews were, however, conducted at the Kittilä and Rovaniemi airports. Visitors may have reported more than one main destination.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

41

Helsinki Metropolitan Area as main destination The Helsinki Metropolitan Area was the main destination for just over half of travellers. 700 600

thousand trips

500 400 300 200 100

637

Helsinki airport transit passenger

548

362

426 274 177

127

82

95

69

127

57

0

49

60

69

64

94

86

148 48

477

207

187 61

65

70

74

The most trips to the Helsinki Metropolitan Area were made from Russia, Estonia, Sweden and Germany, as well as from Japan and China, of which trips more than 40% were transit trips made through Helsinki airport. The Helsinki Metropolitan Area was the main destination for just over half of the travellers (55%), amounting to 4.92 million trips to the capital area, of which 1.28 million were transit trips. For Russian visitors, the Helsinki Metropolitan Area was the main destination in only one in four trips while 70% of trips made by other non-residents had the capital area as their main destination.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

42

Rest of Southern Finland as travel destination Visitors to Southern Finland outside the Helsinki Metropolitan Area are, in practice, Russian residents. 1 800 1 600

thousand trips

1 400 1 200 1 000

1 717

800 600 400 200

0

87 74 45 15 12

7

7

8

13

5

6

4

7

5

19 12

7

11

2

2

5

5

2

1

21

3

With the exception of Russian residents, the rest of Southern Finland (Uusimaa, Kanta-Häme, Päijät-Häme, Kymenlaakso and Etelä-Karjala regions) were relatively seldom the main destination. Approximately half (49%) of the trips made to other parts of Southern Finland from Russia were to Lappeenranta and just over a quarter (27%) were made to Imatra.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

43

Destination in other parts of Finland Trips made outside of Southern Finland totalled 2.3 million. 500 450 400 thousand trips

350 300 250 150 100 50

0

447

423

200 215

161

120

83

12

39

29

41

48

21

26

31

43

47

32

21

42

10

25

65

106

6

8

102

26

Trips made outside of Southern Finland totalled 2.31 million, of which just under a third (29%) headed to Turku. A third of trips to Turku were made from Sweden and one tenth from Estonia. Trips to Lapland came to 430 thousand, of which the majority were made from China, the UK, Japan, Germany and Sweden. Every other (49%) trip made from Russia to other parts of Finland was made to the Joensuu region, but trips were also taken to the Mikkeli and Savonlinna regions. VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

44

What is interesting about Finland

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

45

What is interesting about Finland? Cultural destinations are generally the most interesting attractions.

Europe North America Latin America Asia Africa (indicative) Australia & Oceania

100%

90%

% of all trips

80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10%

0%

Finnish cultural attractions

Finnish archipelago

Finnish culinary experiences (e.g. food)

Finnish sauna

Wellness services Summer activities Summer activities and treatments on land (eg. cycling, on the water (eg. hiking, wildlife swimming, watching) paddling, sailing, cruises, fishing)

Material for July-December, all visitors

Visitors were asked which of the listed Finnish activities they were most interested in. Most frequently Finnish cultural attractions were deemed the most interesting. Particularly visitors arriving from the United States and Australia are interested in these, but they also expressed an interest in summer activities, having a sauna and Finnish cuisines. Visitors arriving in Finland from Europe were less interested in Finnish cultural attractions than others. They were, instead, more interested in having a sauna and summer activities. All of the visitors showed the least interest in wellness services and treatments. VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

46

Finnish cultural attractions

Visitors from outside Europe were more interested in Finnish cultural attractions. 100%

% of trips (excl. transit passengers)

90% 80% 70%

Interested in

Experienced during trip

60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%

17%

17% 25% 25% 21%

23%

44%

23%

19% 15%

25%

17% 34% 39% 39% 11%

19%

19% 20%

29%

43%

14% 25%

17% 43%

12%

17%

18% 13%

20%

35% 39% 28% 24% 28% 13% 18% 10%

22%

26%

14% 12%

16%

31%

24% 54% 49% 52%

23%

62% 62% 32%

30%

11% 36%

55%

Material for July-December, not Helsinki airport transit passengers

Visitors from outside Europe were more interested in Finnish cultural attractions. They also spent more time visiting them during their trips. Visitors from Japan are not as interested in Finnish culture as those arriving from China and South Korea.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

47

Finnish archipelago

More than half of the people who are interested in the Finnish archipelago did not experience it.

% of trips (excl. transit passengers)

100%

90%

Interested in

80%

Experienced during trip

70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%

14%

24%

7% 6%

24%

15%

14%

21%

19% 11% 24%

13% 10% 7% 12% 6%

18%

21% 23%

16%

15%

16% 11% 7%

11%

20% 13% 12%

25%

7% 18%

16% 25% 14% 20% 9% 18% 17% 15% 14% 14% 11% 12% 12% 11% 11% 9% 8% 11% 6% 5% 7% 6% 5% 1% 0%

Material for July-December, not Helsinki airport transit passengers

More than half of the people who are interested in the Finnish archipelago did not experience it during their trip. This is also the case when examining the material only for the summer. This may indicate that visitors have not been able to reach the archipelago within the timeframe of the trip. This could result from, for example, the visitors not being aware of how to reach the archipelago or that getting there can be too difficult. It may also be that visitors are not interested enough in the archipelago to lead to them visiting it.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

48

Finnish cuisine

Residents of North American and Australia show the greatest interest towards Finnish cuisine. 100%

% of trips (excl. transit passengers)

90%

Interested in

80%

Experienced during trip

70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%

8%

13%

11% 8%

6%

18%

11% 11% 23% 21%

7% 32%

8% 6% 21% 22%

9%

14%

11% 21%

14% 14%

13% 21%

22%

6% 5% 2%

15% 21%

9% 5% 17% 5%

10% 27%

8% 22% 15%

18%

35% 39%

9% 15%

12%

6%

2% 6% 23% 17% 12% 10% 8% 4% 9%

36%

Material for July-December, not Helsinki airport transit passengers

Residents of North American and Australia show the greatest interest towards Finnish cuisine. They have also tasted Finnish foods more frequently than others during their trips. The least interest towards Finnish cuisine is shown by visitors from Latvia, Russia, Estonia and Asia.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

49

Finnish sauna

Every sixth trip has included a visit to a Finnish sauna. 100%

% of trips (excl. transit passengers)

90%

Interested in

80%

Experienced during trip

70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%

18% 16%

16% 10%

18% 17%

16% 25%

18% 17%

14% 31%

13% 14% 19% 20%

17% 12% 16% 16% 8% 27% 26% 29% 27% 29%

28% 23% 11%

28%

20% 10%

14% 19%

14% 28%

27%

16%

23%

20% 23% 16%

5%

24%

18% 20% 21% 14% 12% 16% 14% 15% 4%

30%

17% 12%

Material for July-December, not Helsinki airport transit passengers

When not including transit passengers at Helsinki airport, every sixth trip has included a visit to a Finnish sauna. Not including Latin America, visitors have been interested in visiting a Finnish sauna on some 20–45 per cent of trips made to Finland. During the year, 270 thousand visitors from Russia, 120 thousand from Sweden, 90 thousand from Germany, 70 thousand from Estonia and 50 thousand from China and France had a sauna.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

50

Wellness services and treatments Wellness services are used mostly by visitors from Russia. % of trips (excl. transit passengers)

100%

90%

Interested in

80%

Experienced during trip

70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%

10%

5% 9% 2% 5% 1% 8% 6% 9% 4% 7% 5% 2% 4% 4%

18%

7% 4% 4% 7% 16% 0% 4% 5%

11%

6% 4% 12%

Material for July-December, not Helsinki airport transit passengers

Usually on fewer than every tenth trip visitors have stated an interest in wellness services and treatments. Visitors from Russia, South Korea and Canada are clearly slightly more interested than other groups. However, Canadian residents have not used these services during their trips to Finland. Travellers arriving from France who were interested in wellness services have also used them, while the use of wellness services on the part of many others has gone no further than expressing an interest in them. It is unlikely that finding wellness services is very difficult which indicates that the low level of interest and use probably mean that visitors wish to experience other things on their trips. During the year, wellness services were used on 230 thousand trips. Of these, close to three in four (71%) were made by Russian residents. VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

51

Summer activities on land

Visitors arriving from Europe, North America and Australia show more interest than others. 100%

% of trips (excl. transit passengers)

90%

Interested in

80%

Experienced during trip

70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%

23%

26%

13% 14%

23% 19% 7%

23%

20% 23% 11%

26%

26% 14%

13% 24%

16%

24%

23% 19%

17% 20% 16%

28%

26% 20%

26%

28% 16%

19%

31% 32%

18%

15%

18%

24%

17%

33%

11% 5% 22% 20% 16% 18% 14% 13% 12% 11% 10% 5% 9% 6% 7% 9% 9% 7%

Material for July-December, not Helsinki airport transit passengers

Summer activities on land include cycling, hiking, and wildlife watching. Visitors arriving from Europe, North America and Australia show more interest than others in these types of activities than visitors arriving from Asia and Latin America. Visitors from Europe participated most frequently in these types of activities during their trip. VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

52

Summer activities on the water

Visitors arriving from Europe, North America and Australia show more interest than others.

% of trips (excl. transit passengers)

100%

90%

Interested in

80%

Experienced during trip

70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%

20%

24%

16%

23%

16% 25%

19%

12% 17%

21% 14%

26% 18% 15%

23%

21%

29% 23%

12%

22% 19% 18% 12% 17% 18% 17% 10% 20% 20% 17% 12% 13% 10% 11% 12% 7% 13% 16% 6% 10% 10% 7% 9% 8% 9% 3% 6% 6% 6% 6% 5% 5% 1% 3% 1% 4%

Material for July-December, not Helsinki airport transit passengers

As with summer activities carried out on land, also summer activities carried out on the water are least interesting to visitors from Asian and Latin America. Summer activities on the water include swimming, paddling, sailing, cruises and fishing.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

53

Finland’s popularity

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

54

How frequently in Finland A third of trips are made by first-time visitors. 3 000

More than 4 times a year

100,0 %

2 500

Once a year or less

83,3 %

First-time visitor

Share of first-time visitors

66,6 % % of trips

thousand trips

2 000

2–4 times a year

1 500

50,0 %

1 000

33,3 %

500

16,7 %

0

0,0 %

A third of trips, i.e. 2.90 million, were trips made by first-time visitors. The most first-time visitors to Finland arrived from China, Japan, Russia and Germany. At least half of all trips made from Finland’s neighbouring countries and the Baltics are made by visitors who visit Finland at least twice a year.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

55

How frequently in Finland Trips per year

Estonia Sweden Germany United Kingdom France Denmark Italy Netherlands Spain Poland Belgium Lithuania Latvia Other EU countries Russia Norway Switzerland Other European countries United States Canada Latin America Japan China South Korea India Rest of Asia Australia TOTAL

First-time visitor 24,000 85,000 194,000 154,000 127,000 38,000 70,000 40,000 98,000 52,000 23,000 26,000 20,000 59,000 210,000 30,000 48,000 41,000 115,000 43,000 71,000 322,000 382,000 166,000 47,000 196,000 66,000 2,898,000

Once a year or less 208,000 212,000 89,000 58,000 29,000 24,000 22,000 17,000 26,000 16,000 16,000 12,000 27,000 12,000 157,000 35,000 25,000 9,000 37,000 13,000 6,000 65,000 42,000 14,000 7,000 38,000 13,000 1,261,000

2–4 times a year 302,000 292,000 103,000 58,000 36,000 22,000 25,000 30,000 29,000 24,000 19,000 31,000 41,000 17,000 692,000 40,000 28,000 17,000 30,000 13,000 7,000 60,000 79,000 13,000 18,000 37,000 12,000 2,118,000

More than 4 times a year

The table shows only countries of whose residents at least 100 have been interviewed.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

252,000 235,000 32,000 22,000 8,000 13,000 4,000 9,000 8,000 8,000 7,000 12,000 10,000 7,000 1,681,000 25,000 13,000 3,000 3,000 0 0 8,000 20,000 1,000 3,000 13,000 1,000 2,412,000

56

First time in Finland

Among visitors from Russia, the number of first-time visits fell by almost half from a year earlier. 450

2014

thousand trips

400 350

2015

300 250 200

322

150 100 50

0

194 24

85

154

127

210 38

70

40

98

52

23

26

20

59

30

48

41

115

43

71

* The 2014 figure for Russia is indicative

382 196

166 47

66

The number of first-time visitors to Finland increased 3 per cent (74 thousand trips) despite the fact that, among visitors from Russia, the number of firsttime visits taking place fell by almost half from a year earlier. More first-time visitors arrived from, in particular, China, Japan and other Asian countries than before.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

57

Would you recommend Finland First-time visitors would not recommend Finland as easily as others would. Visited Finland before

10

First time in Finland

Helsinki airport transit passenger

9

average 0 (not likely at all) 10 (extremely likely)

8 7 6 5 4 3

8,3

8,4

7,8

9,0

8,6

8,0

9,7

9,0

8,5

8,6

7,8

7,4

9,0

7,9

9,3

8,8

7,6

2 1 0

Europe

North America

Results based on material from July-December

Latin America

Asia

Africa

Australia & Oceania

Visitors were asked how likely they would be to recommend Finland to a friend or relative on a scale of 1 to 10. Transit passengers at Helsinki airport have been removed from the other groups’ results (reported separately in diagram) as they often give more neutral scores due to the fact that they have not yet had the chance to form an opinion on Finland.

First-time visitors would not be as likely to recommend Finland as people who have visited Finland before, although with Russian and Estonian visitors the situation is the opposite. The lower likelihood that first-time non-resident visitors would recommend Finland may be a sign that their trips did not completely meet their expectations. It may also indicate that it is not possible to do everything or to discover everything that Finland has to offer on the first trip. VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

58

Would you recommend Finland?

Visitors arriving from Asian countries are not as ready to recommend Finland as others are.

% of trips (excl. transit passengers)

100%

90% 80% 70% 60%

48% 53%

57%

48%

66%

48%

54%

45%

28% 60% 55%

47%

64% 64%

55%

40% 41%

50%

62% 61% 64% 58%

50%

39%

28%

77%

39% 73%

61%

Might recommend (7–8)

40% 30% 20% 10% 0%

12% 8% 11% 10%

4%

14% 13%

8% 9% 4% 13% 7% 1% 5% 5%

15%

25%

8% 5% 6% 5% 2%

13% 18% 11%

5%

Extremely likely to recommend (9–10)

20%

5%

Unlikely to recommend (0–6)

Visitors arriving from Latin and North America, Australia and India, and, of the European countries, the UK, Latvia, Lithuania and Switzerland were the most prepared to recommend Finland. Those least likely to recommend Finland were visitors from Norway, Russia and Asian countries with the exception of India. Particularly those visiting Finland for the first time from Asian countries would not be as likely to recommend Finland as visitors arriving from elsewhere. These deviations may be the result of cultural differences but it is also possible that expectations concerning the trips were higher. The figures exclude transit passengers at Helsinki airport. VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

59

Background information VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

60

Total gross income of families

The euro-denominated incomes of visitors to Finland declined due to a change in the price of the rouble. 25%

2014

20%

2015

% of trips

15% 10% 5% 0%

In the case of more than half of the trips made to Finland, the gross annual income of the visitor’s family was at most EUR 30 thousand and at the most EUR 40 thousand in two thirds of all cases. Families arriving from Russia who earn EUR 20–50 thousand made 1.52 million trips fewer to Finland than a year earlier. At the same time Russian families whose income is less than EUR 20 thousand annually made 740 thousand more trips than earlier. This is partially the result of the weakening of the rouble’s exchange rate that occurred during 2015 (average rate −25%), which reduces the income of Russian residents in euros. Also Russian residents earning more than EUR 200 thousand made 81 thousand trips a year earlier while in 2015 they made just 3,000 trips. In comparison, residents of China and Japan earning the same amount made altogether three times more trips than in 2014 (+15 thousand trips).

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

61

Age and gender distribution The share of trips made by men grew compared to last year. 100%

90% 80%

% of trips

70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20%

57%

43%

10% 0%

Male

Female

2%

Under 15

14% 15–24

26% 25–34

25% 35–44

19% 45–54

10% 55–64

5%

Over 64

Of trips made to Finland in 2015, 57% were by men and 43% by women. The share of trips made by men thus grew by 2.7 percentage points compared to a year earlier. Also the share of trips made by 15–24 year-olds grew by 4 percentage points while the share of trips made by those over 54 years of age declined. VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

62

Occupational distribution More than two thirds of trips were made by employed people. 100%

90% 80%

% of trips

70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%

26%

15%

17%

Employee Salaried employee Executive

10% Self-employed

6%

Pensioner

2% Unemployed

2%

Housewife

14% Student

7%

Other

More than two thirds of trips made to Finland were made by employed people. Students accounted for one trip in seven and pensioners for one in fifteen trips.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

63

Travel companions

Almost one third of trips were made by persons travelling alone. 100%

90% 80%

% of trips

70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%

30%

Alone

41%

With family/relatives

23% With friends/acquaintances

9%

I am on a group tour

In 2015, almost one third of trips made to Finland were made by persons travelling alone. Two in five trips included family members or relatives and every four trips included a friend or acquaintance. Approximately every one trip in ten was made by a tourist travelling with a tour group.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

64

Area of residence in home country VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

65

Trips from Russia

A total of 2.74 million trips were made from Russia, of which two thirds, i.e. 1.75 million, were made by residents of St. Petersburg. Moscow was the point of departure on 5% of the trips, but Moscow’s share of leisure trips, where Finland was the main destination, was 10%. In addition to St. Petersburg, Vyborg and the rest of the Leningrad Oblast accounted for 490 thousand trips. One hundred and twenty thousand trips were made from Petrozavodsk, 90 thousand from Sortavala and 50 thousand from elsewhere in the Republic of Karelia. Yekaterinburg, from where Finnair flies, was the point of departure for altogether 25 thousand trips and 8 thousand were made from other parts of Asian Russia. VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

66

Trips from China

A total of 520 thousand trips were made from China, the majority of which were made from cities to which Finnair flies. The majority of trips were made from Hong Kong, altogether 104 thousand, of which 29 thousand were leisure trips with Finland as the main destination. Transit trips from Hong Kong came to 59 thousand, with the next largest amount, i.e. 86 thousand trips, made from Beijing. Of these, 16 thousand were leisure trips and 48 thousand transit trips. Approximately half of the leisure trips with Finland as the main destination were thus made by residents of Hong Kong and Beijing.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

67

Trips from Japan

All in all, 450 thousand trips were made to Finland. Close to nine out of ten were made from the Kantō, Chūbu and Kinki regions, where Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto and Nagoya, among other cities, are located. Half of the trips made from the Kantō region (Tokyo) were leisure trips with Finland as the main destination while, of trips made from other parts of Japan, an average of 16% were leisure trips.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

68

Trips from Germany

A total of 420 thousand trips were made to Finland from Germany of which 120 thousand were leisure trips with Finland as the main destination. The majority of trips were made from the North Rhine-Westphalia, Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg states and from Berlin. Two out of three trips were made from these four regions.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

69

Trips from the UK

All in all, 290 thousand trips were made to Finland from the UK. Two out of five, i.e. 120 thousand trips were made from the Greater London area. Of these a quarter (29 thousand trips) were leisure trips with Finland as the main destination. Seven thousand trips were made from Scotland, 7 thousand from Northern Ireland and 15 thousand from Ireland.

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY

70

Finpro, Visit Finland

Porkkalankatu 1, PL/P.O. Box 358 FI-00181 Helsinki www.visitfinland.fi/ ISBN 978-951-822-055-1 (Electronic publication) ISSN 2342-8791

VISIT FINLAND VISITOR SURVEY 2015

TUTKIMUS- JA ANALYSOINTIKESKUS TAK OY