An increasing number of travellers are choosing to book their stays online through platforms such as Airbnb, Booking and Expedia. This trend is now firmly established across Europe, as shown by the latest data published by Eurostat, referring to short-stay accommodation bookings recorded at national level in the third quarter of 2025. The analysis is based on data provided directly to Eurostat by the three international platforms under data-sharing agreements in place since 2020, and covers short-stay accommodation located in EU Member States and EFTA countries.
According to Eurostat, between July and September 2025, guests spent 398.1 million nights in short-term rental accommodation across the EU booked through the three major online platforms. This represents an 8.7% increase compared with summer 2024 and a 28.2% rise compared with summer 2023.
July the most dynamic month
According to Eurostat data, July was the month with the highest recorded increase, with a 10% increase year on year, totalling 148.5 million guest nights. August followed with 164.3 million nights, while September registered 85.3 million nights; both months showed an 8% increase compared with 2024.
However, growth rates in the quarter varied considerably between countries. Malta recorded the highest increase (+24%), followed by Cyprus (+19.4%), Sweden (+13.1%) and Greece (+12.3%). Double-digit growth was also observed in Latvia, Germany, Denmark, Slovenia, Ireland, Finland and Czechia.
Among the seven most visited EU countries – France, Spain, Italy, Greece, Croatia, Germany and Portugal – only Greece and Germany recorded double-digit growth. The remaining destinations posted more moderate increases, led by Portugal (+9.6%), with Italy recording the lowest growth rate (+5.5%).
Mediterranean destinations remain the most popular
In addition to national data, Eurostat also released regional figures referring to the second quarter of 2025 (April – June). These confirm the strong appeal of Mediterranean destinations. Andalusia was the most visited region, with 13.3 million guest nights, followed by Croatia’s coastal region Jadranska Hrvatska (9.6 million), Île-de-France (9.0 million) and Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur (8.6 million).
In Italy, the most popular regions were Lazio, Lombardy, Tuscany, Sicily and Veneto.
A great summer season for Croatia: equal to or even higher than the record one of 2019