Holiday, leisure, recreation most common goals for visitors choosing Georgia

Holiday, leisure and recreation are the most common purposes for international travellers who pick Georgia as their travel destination, the national statistics office has revealed.

In its release of figures on inbound tourism in the third quarter of 2022, the body also said visiting friends and relatives was the next most-cited goal for travellers visiting the country.

The detailed breakdown of reasons for international visits included:

• Holiday, Leisure, Recreation – 1.14 million travellers (60.3%)
• Visiting friends/relatives – 310,900 travellers (16.4%)
• Transit to other country – 292,800 travellers (15.4%)
• Business or professional – 73,900 travellers (3.9%)
• Shopping - 46,800 travellers (2.5%)
• Health and medical care – 7,600 travellers (0.4%)

In total, the number of arrivals of international non-resident travellers in Georgia equaled 2.3 million, which is 2.8 times higher compared to the data from the same period of previous year. Most of the income (42.9 percent) was contributed by travellers of the 31-50 age group.

The number of visits by international visitors from the above-mentioned number made up 1.9 million (2.6 times higher y/y) while the number of international visitors equaled 1.6 million (2.5 times higher y/y). They made 1.5 million tourist-type visits (2.2 times higher y/y).

Geostat said 78.7 percent of international visitors had been comprised of tourists, the share of excursionists amounted to 17.3 percent, while four percent of visitors were both tourists and same-day visitors.

The average number of nights spent during the visits equaled to 6.8 nights and 65 percent of visits were repeat visits.

Which countries did the visitors originate in throughout Q3 2022?

Geostat said the largest number of visitors had been from Russia, with the figure standing at 443,600 and marking a 27.7 percent of the total. Visitors from Armenia were second with 15.3 percent share and those entering from Türkiye in third with 13.7 percent.

Correspondingly, the largest number of visits were made by the Russian citizens (533,200), Armenia (326,000) and Türkiye (281,300). 

Where do inbound visitors travel to in Georgia?

Georgia’s capital of Tbilisi was the most visited area, while the Imereti region in the country’s west the least popular destination in the country.

Here are the top five most visited areas:

• Tbilisi – 31.6%
• Adjara – 31.1%
• Mtskheta-Mtianeti – 12.5%
• Samtskhe-Javakheti - 5.6%
• Imereti - 5.5%
• Kakheti – 4.2%
• Kvemo Kartli – 3.7%

People aged 31-50 were the most avid inbound travellers (47.3 percent). In terms of gender, the number of women equaled 44.9 percent of the total number of visitors. 

How much do people spend while in Georgia?

The expenditures during the visits made in the third quarter of 2022 equaled ₾4.6 billion ($1.70bln), with average expenditure at ₾2,411.4 ($889.86). Inbound visitors spent the largest proportion of money on accommodation, said Geostat.

On average, the total amount spent in Q3 of 2022 per category was:

Image: Geostat