The number of international arrivals in Georgia reached a record number of 6,350,825 in 2016, which is 449,731 more than the previous year representing annual growth of 7.6%. The greatest number of visitors hailed from Azerbaijan (1,523,075, an increase of 9.3%), followed by Armenia (1,496,246, an increase of 1.9%) and Turkey (1,254,089 – a decreased of 9.9% from last year). 1,037,564 Russian visitors visited Georgia in 2016, which is a full 12% more than in 2015, while visits from Ukraine increased by 21.8%, amounting to 172,631 people.
The year-on-year statistics for visitors from Europe also show positive signs. The total number of travelers from Lithuania, Latvia, Czech Republic, Bulgaria and Germany has all significantly increased. An exceptional increase in arrivals was observed from the following countries: Iran (+485%), India (+ 199%), Saudi Arabia (+ 116%), the Philippines (+ 89%), Oman (+ 75%), and China (+46%).
The income from international tourism has also increased, amounting to USD 1.7 billion in three quarters of 2016. That represents USD 177 million more than figures from the previous year.