Domestic travellers continue to dominate Ghana's accommodation market, with monthly numbers ranging from 1.87 million to 2.17 million between November 2024 and February 2025. The Ghana Statistical Service's Accommodation Unit Survey found that domestic guests accounted for the overwhelming majority of guests recorded across accommodation establishments during this period. In contrast, the number of foreign guests remained below 40,000 per month. This significant difference in volume highlights the differing roles of domestic and international visitors in Ghana's tourism industry.
Despite the lower volume of foreign guests, they generally recorded longer stays than domestic visitors, particularly in hotels. On average, foreign guests stayed for about three to four nights, compared with approximately two nights for domestic hotel guests. This disparity in stay length has important implications for the economic benefits generated by each visitor. According to the GSS, longer stays create more opportunities for spending across accommodation, food, transport, entertainment, and other tourism-related services.
The survey's findings suggest that measuring tourism performance solely by the number of visitors may not fully capture the sector's economic potential. The GSS emphasizes that the duration of a visitor's stay matters, as it influences the broader economic benefits generated by each visitor. As a result, tourism businesses and destination managers are encouraged to focus not only on attracting visitors but also on creating conditions and products that encourage them to stay longer.
The dominance of domestic guests provides an important market for accommodation operators and tourism businesses. The GSS recommends that accommodation providers, tour operators, and destination managers develop products that respond to domestic travel patterns. These could include packages linked to attractions, cultural events, festivals, conferences, and other travel purposes. By catering to domestic tourists, businesses can tap into a substantial and reliable market.
However, the GSS stresses that greater focus on domestic tourism does not replace the importance of international visitors. Instead, the two markets play different roles, with domestic visitors providing substantial volume while foreign visitors record longer stays in several accommodation categories. A balanced approach that targets both markets is likely to be the most effective strategy for Ghana's tourism industry.
Encouraging visitors to extend their stays could increase demand for a wider range of services and spread tourism spending across local economies. Longer stays can generate additional demand for accommodation, food, transportation, entertainment, and cultural experiences, creating opportunities beyond the initial hotel booking. By extending their stays, visitors can contribute more significantly to the local economy.
The findings form part of Ghana's first nationally representative longitudinal survey of short-stay accommodation activity, covering licensed and unlicensed establishments. The GSS cautions that the findings cover only four months of a planned 12-month data collection programme and should therefore be treated as an emerging baseline rather than evidence of long-term trends. The survey provides valuable insights into Ghana's accommodation market and will inform strategies to deepen tourism's contribution to the wider economy.
Key points
- Domestic travellers dominate Ghana's accommodation market, accounting for 1.87-2.17 million monthly guests.
- Foreign visitors stay longer than domestic guests, with an average stay of 3-4 nights in hotels.
- Encouraging longer stays can increase tourism spending and contribute to the local economy.
