Investment company says Georgia's annual tourism revenue expected to reach $4 bln

Galt & Taggart, a Georgian-based company for investment banking and management services, has forecast the country’s annual tourism revenues to reach the range of $4 billion, the company’s economist Lasha Kavtaradze said on Saturday.

Kavtaradze explained migrants who had already become residents had been excluded from the tourism statistics, and noted revenues from tourism would reach $1 billion for the July-August summer season.

In the first quarter of 2023, 1.2 million international non-resident travellers entered Georgia, twice as many as the figure in the same period of last year, Kavtaradze told local media.

He also emphasised tourism revenue had increased by up to 18 percent, compared to the previous year.

"Between January-May 2023, Georgia's income from international tourism amounted to $1.35 billion”, Kavtaradze said while also highlighting monthly growth, which reached $250 million in April and equalled $304 million in May.