The founder of the hotel “Paliani” in Svaneti, Ekaterine Gvelesiani, says that the winter season in the region is unfolding amid significant challenges. According to her, just like in the rest of Georgia, the flow of European visitors to Mestia has decreased, and the idea that this decline has been offset by tourists from Asian markets is incorrect. She notes that occupancy alone does not determine the real picture - spending power must also be considered.
“Talking about the Asian, particularly the Chinese market balancing out the decline in the European segment is simply incorrect. Judging tourism performance only by occupancy rates is overly simplistic. There are many other factors in tourism, and occupancy alone is not a proper indicator. As for Hotel ‘Paliani,’ the summer season was quite strong, but the winter season is facing the same issues this year,” said Gvelesiani.
Speaking to bm.ge, she also highlighted the persistent challenges in Svaneti, noting that the biggest problems this year remain frequent power outages and inadequate infrastructure.
“I opened Hotel Paliani in 2022. This is now the fifth year that I am on your air talking about the exact same problems - the power supply, the roads, the lack of gasification, and so on. It is evident that nothing is improving year after year, even though Svaneti is a uniquely promising region with tremendous potential. It is absolutely clear by now that there is no political will to improve conditions and unlock Svaneti’s full potential. For the fifth year in a row, we are still talking about power outages,” said Ekaterine Gvelesiani, founder of Hotel “Paliani.”
