Why do foreigners travel to Georgia, how much do they spend?

A total of 2.2 million international, non-resident visitors came to Georgia in the second quarter (Q2) of 2019, with  45% being made by travellers between the ages of 31-50.

The number of arrivals was 13.4 per cent higher compared to the previous year, show the latest data published by the National Statistics Office of Georgia (Geostat).

The number of visits by international visitors came to 1.9 million, which is 13 per cent higher compared to 2018.

In Q2 of 2019 the number of international visitors** equalled1.5 million, which is 13 per cent higher compared to the previous year. 

During April-June 2019, 66.2 per cent of international visitors were tourists (a visitor whose trip includes one overnight stay in Georgia), while the share of visitors whose trip did not include an overnight stay in Georgia amounted to 27.9 per cent.

In Q2 of 2019 the largest number of visitors (378,200 visitors) was from the Russian Federation, which equalled 24.9 percent of the total number of visitors.

Most visits came from:

• Russia -  448,000 visits
• Azerbaijan - 325,000 visits
• Armenia - 298,000 visits

40 per cent of travellers were female.

Distribution of arrivals of international non-resident travellers by age groups in II quarters of 2018-2019. Photo: Geostat.

The top reasons for visiting Georgia were the following:

• Holiday, leisure, recreation - 884,200 visits (46.6%)
• Visiting friends/relatives - 324,400 visits (17.1%)
• Transit to other country - 298,300 visits (15.7%)
• Business or professional - 203,900 visits (10.8%)
• Shopping - 109,200 visits (5.8%)
• Health and medical care - 27,200 visits (1.4%)
• Other - 48,900 visits (2.6%)

The majority of visits were to the Georgian capital of Tbilisi and the mountainous Adjara region.

Distribution of visits by the visited regions in Q2 of 2019. Numbers are given in per cents. Photo: Geostat.

In Q2 of 2019 the average number of nights spent during visits to Georgia equalled 3.9 nights.

Meanwhile, 70% of inbound visits were repeat visits, said Geostat.

The chart below shows that the majority of travellers (58.7%) were very satisfied with travelling in Georgia.

Distribution of visits by the level of satisfaction in Q2 of 2019. Numbers are given in per cents. Photo: Geostat. 

Travellers spent 2.4 billion GEL (about $0.8/€0.7 billion) in Georgia in Q2 of 2019, which is a 24.6 per cent increase compared to the previous year. 

The average expenditure on the visit amounted to 1,261.6 GEL (about $433.2/€387.3).

Visitors spent the highest amount of money on:

• Accommodation (24.7%)
• Foods and drinks (24.5%)
• Holiday, leisure, recreation, cultural and sporting activities (23.4%)

*According to the Word Tourism Organisation, a traveller is someone who moves between different geographic locations, for any purpose and any duration.

** Visitor is a traveller aged 15 or above, non-resident of Georgia, took a trip outside his/her usual environment to Georgia for less than a year (except following categories: employment, diplomatic or consular officers accredited to Georgia, Armed Forces servants and their dependants and persons who frequently cross borders).