National Tourism Administration Head expects growth in visitor numbers and tourism revenue in Q3

Maia Omiadze, Head of the Georgian National Tourism Administration, on Tuesday reviewed the summer tourism season, expressing confidence that positive trends in both visitor numbers and tourism revenue will continue.

Speaking about the sector’s performance, Omiadze noted that despite significant challenges at the beginning of the year, including hostilities in the Middle East, Georgia’s long-term diversification strategy helped mitigate the impact on tourism from the region.

“There were many challenges at the beginning of the year, but despite the military developments in the Middle East, we managed to minimise losses from the region’s tourism markets. We worked extensively before the start of the summer season and did everything possible to reduce those losses as early as the second quarter. As for the third quarter, it has been a very active season. I do not want to get ahead of the official figures, but we expect it to be a very strong quarter. Overall, positive year-on-year dynamics in both tourist arrivals and tourism revenue are expected to continue”, she said.

Omiadze stressed that expanding into new target markets and increasing the geographic reach of direct air connections remain crucial for sustaining stable growth and offsetting potential market fluctuations.

“What we have achieved is the result of a consistent and diversified policy. When you are not dependent on a single market and instead operate across multiple markets, you can compensate for fluctuations by redirecting or replacing visitor flows from one market with those from another. We worked actively with China, as well as European and Central Asian countries. New air routes were launched, while the frequency of existing flights was increased”, Omiadze concluded.