National Bank - Tourism Revenue Decreased by $ 57.8 Million in July
The National Bank of Georgia has released updated statistics on tourism sector revenue. According to the current macroeconomic indicators document, Georgia's tourism industry generated revenue of $ 374.7 million in July 2019, which is $ 57.8 million, or 13.3% less than the same period a year earlier.
According to the Tourism Administration, Georgia's tourism sector grew in July, totaling 5.8% to 1,099,474, and the number of direct tourist visits increased by 1% to 570,482. However, according to the NBG's preliminary calculations, the sector's earnings declined.
In July, the number of tourists from many countries, including Saudi Arabia, Israel, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and other countries, has increased, but there has been a decrease in flow from the Russian Federation and Iran.
More specifically, 159,063 Russian visitors arrived in Georgia in July amid a 6.4% drop from the same period in 2018, of which 50,849 were transit visitors and 108,214 were tourists. The number of Russian tourists directly decreased by 14.8% (18,851) compared to the same period of 2018.