Fair weather over the weekend drew around 300,000 day tourists to the seaside, boosting the business of coastal hotels, which reported an occupancy rate of nearly 95%, according to data released on Monday by West Flanders' tourism office, Westtoer.
The coastal hospitality industry had been eagerly awaiting such a boom, brought forth by the return of sunny weather and summer-like temperatures during the National Holiday weekend, the first “exceptional weekend” of the summer season.
Train services to popular destinations like Ostend and Blankenberge were increased by national railway company SNCB, while coastal hotels experienced a surge in reservations.
The seaside welcomed 300,000 day-trippers and registered about 450,000 overnight stays. Occupancy rates in coastal hotels averaged between 90 and 95%.
Westtoer revealed that the number of booked nights was 2% higher than last year while day-tourist inflows increased by 35% compared to 2023.
It should be noted that National Day, 21 July, fell on a Friday last year.
