Q1 2017: Georgians spend almost 115m GEL on domestic tourism

About 977.500 Georgians aged 15 and older ventured away from their homes and visited another region in Georgia in the first quarter (Q1) of 2017.

These travellers spent almost 115 million GEL (about $47.68m/€42.25m*) in total while travelling in Georgia.

People aged 31-50 were the most avid domestic travellers (190,200 people), while the least people willing to travel were the elderly (41,700 people).

In terms of gender, more women (417,100) travelled around Georgia than men (376,500) in Q1 2017.

Where do domestic travellers go in Georgia?

Tbilisi was the most visited area, while the Imreti region in the country’s west was the second most popular destination.

Here are the top five most visited areas:

• Tbilisi – 263,800 domestic travellers
• Imereti – 197,500 domestic travellers
• Adjara – 102,300 domestic travellers
• Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti – 77,100 domestic travellers
• Kakheti – 69,900 domestic travellers

Why do Georgians travel around their home country?

Most people travelled to another region in Georgia to visit friends or relatives, while the next most common reason for internal travel was shopping.

The top reasons for internal travel included:

• Visiting friends/relatives – 539,400 travellers
• Health and Medical Care – 124,500 travellers
• Shopping – 119,500 travellers
• Visiting another house (cottage, etc.) – 57,400 travellers
• Holiday, Leisure, Recreation – 45,300 travellers

How much do people spend while on holiday?

Georgians spent the largest proportion of money on shopping, said Geostat.

On average, the total amount spent in Q1 2017 per category was:

• Shopping – 35.9m GEL
• Foods and drinks – 24.5m GEL
• Transport – 22m GEL
• Accommodation – 2.4m GEL
• Holiday, leisure, recreation, cultural and sporting activities – 1.4m GEL
• Other expenditures – 28.7m GEL

Are locals happy with travel and leisure infrastructure?

The monthly average number of visits made by visitors age 15 and older by satisfaction level is the following:

• Very dissatisfied – 6,800
• Dissatisfied – 35,800
• Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied – 156,600
• Satisfied – 471,600
• Very satisfied – 300,500

Furthermore, 6,200 travellers did not know or found it hard to answer whether they were satisfied of dissatisfied with their travel in Georgia, said Geostat.

* Currency conversions reflect National Bank of Georgia values as of today.