According to Armenia's Ministry of Finance, the first half of 2024 saw a decline in tourist activity in the country. Finance Minister Vahe Hovhannisyan reported a 6.1% decrease in the total number of tourists visiting Armenia compared to the same period last year.
Hovhannisyan shared this information during a meeting of the Standing Parliamentary Committee on Financial-Budgetary Affairs on September 2, where current economic trends in the country were discussed.
The primary reason for the decrease in tourist numbers was a significant drop in Russian tourists, down by 23.6%. However, this decline was partially offset by an increase in travelers from other countries, particularly from India, Georgia, and Iran.
Despite the current lag compared to 2023 figures, the minister emphasized that Armenia's tourism levels remain substantially higher than those in the pre-pandemic year of 2019.
Earlier, BMG reported that according to the Statistical Committee, Armenia was visited by 946,162 foreign tourists in the first half of 2024, a 6.1% decrease from the same period in 2023, which recorded 1,007,346 visits.
Russia remains the key source of tourists to Armenia, accounting for 42% of all visitors in July, followed by Georgia (13%) and Iran (8%).
