Sunnier days ahead?

Visits to Massachusetts from other countries are up 11 percent so far this year, the state office said.

For the same period, the Massachusetts Port Authority, which runs Logan International Airport, reported a 7.1 percent increase in passenger arrivals at Logan, including a 6 percent increase in international arrivals.

“Early 2010 data show a modest increase in volume and spending across the US, with Massachusetts increases significantly higher,’’ Wall said.

Rental property agents, hotel operators, and tourism officials say part of the growth in local travel is coming from the area’s own residents. They say that even as the economy slowly rebounds, the “stay-cation,’’ which became popular during the recession, is still favored by vacationers who are looking for less-expensive destinations closer to home.

The summer rental market, in particular, is benefiting. A February survey of 1,000 vacationers by the travel information company TripAdvisor found that 68 percent of those who responded were considering booking a summer vacation rental this year, up from the 52 percent who booked a summer rental last year.

Meanwhile, a report by the rental listing website HomeAway.com showed an overall increase in rental inquiries for key regions of New Hampshire, Maine, and Massachusetts for the January-to-April period, when most people book their summer vacations.

Kelly Weiser, real estate director at Owl’s Nest Golf Resort in Thornton, N.H., estimated that advance bookings for the 100 units at the resort for the summer are up 15 percent over this time last year as more families and golf groups that otherwise would have gone to more exotic destinations are sticking closer to home.

“What we’re seeing is people who might have been buying before are now content to rent,’’ said Weiser, who helps homeowners rent their homes when the condominiums are not being used.

The Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce’s chief executive, Wendy Northcross, said most of her 1,356 members have reported increased bookings.

That’s a change from last year, when the Cape was hit hard not just by the recession but by dismal weather that kept many last-minute visitors away.