Ryanair’s boss has attributed problems related to ‘overtourism’ to short-term rentals and cruise ships rather than the low-cost airline’s increasing number of routes.
Michael O’Leary, Ryanair’s CEO, was speaking to Times of Malta following a press conference that announced six new routes to Malta’s winter schedule.
The new routes are expected to bring Malta’s total passenger traffic to 5.2 million passengers by the end of 2025.
Last year, O’Leary had said that he wanted Ryanair to carry eight million passengers a year to and from Malta.
Throughout the summer, residents have repeatedly voiced their concern about the toll that “overtourism” is having on their locality.
When asked whether increasing the number of routes and passengers was going to exacerbate the problem, O’Leary disagreed.
“We’ve seen these protests against overtourism in Barcelona, Palma, and occasionally here in Malta. Much of that is directed at the Airbnbs or cruise ships, which are delivering lots of people for a very short period of time, who don’t spend any money on the island,” O’Leary said.
By increasing routes during the off-season, O’Leary said Ryanair is helping by “spreading the load”.
Ryanair CEO Michael O’LearyThe CEO stressed the important role the low-cost airline has played in Malta’s economic growth, while also allowing Maltese people to travel across Europe. Asked whether adding more routes during the less popular months would expand this issue to other months, besides summer, O’Leary said he did not see this as a problem, insisting that “Malta has the capacity”.
“During the winter, hotels are underused, and restaurants are half empty. We need to bring more people here during the winter… this keeps people employed year-round rather than five or six months,” he said.
When asked for his opinion on Delta Airlines’ new direct route between Malta and New York, the Ryanair boss said this was “great”, underlining that Malta will always be seen as a year-round popular destination.
“Anything that adds or brings more visitors or new routes to Malta, we think should be welcomed and encouraged,” O’Leary said.
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Last month, Swieqi residents organised a protest to highlight the toll they say overtourism is having on their neighbourhood, and they called for stronger enforcement. Since then, the government announced a community support project to help the localities of Swieqi and Valletta.
A renowned British travel writer, Juliet Rix, has also warned that the Maltese community could be the next victim of overtourism.