Armenian Minister of Economy Gevorg Papoyan announced a significant decrease in the tourist flow from Russia in 2024.
He reminded that last year, half of the tourists arriving in Armenia were from one country - Russia.
"This is risky because it means that the entire world accounts for one half of our tourists, while one country accounts for the other half. This means we need to work in this direction," Papoyan noted, as reported by "Arka."
The minister emphasized that while efforts are being made in Russia to promote tourism to Armenia, priority directions include Arab countries, India, European countries, and Japan.
"This year, we have seen a significant decrease in the tourist flow from Russia, but our tourism sector has only shown a 3% decline because we have seen significant growth from India and Arab countries," he reported.
Papoyan also expressed optimism regarding the further growth of the tourist flow from India due to the opening of direct air connections with Delhi.
"This is already one direction of diversification. I believe that the opening of direct air connections with Delhi provides opportunities for further expansion," the minister added.
Earlier, BMG, citing World Bank data, reported that although 42.3% of tourists continued to come from Russia, their number decreased by 21.9% compared to the first quarter of 2023.
