Two-tier seasonal concentration of tourism in the European Union

The market for tourist services is subject to the most significant impact of seasonality among all sectors of the economy. Due to growing wealth and the increasing amount of free time, the signifi‑ cance of this sector is on the rise. This research aims to outline the degree of seasonality by month in EU member states and identify changes in seasonal tourist concentration and its varying levels from 1990 to 2018. The research uses data on the actual numbers of overnight stays of nationals and non‑nationals from the EUROSTAT databases. The measures include absolute and refined indicators of seasonality and the Gini coefficient. The analysis has enabled three groups of countries to be identified according to different concentration levels. The classification of a specific country into a group seems to be helpful in planning for their domestic market. Moreover, a novelty in the study of the tourism services market is the identification of a two‑stage 8‑year cycle in seasonal tourism concentrations in the European Union.