Despite rising visitor numbers, hotel sector revenues have not kept pace, according to Elene Otarashvili, General Manager of Golden Tulip Design Tbilisi. Speaking to BMGTV, she said that although tourist flows increased from April, especially during Justin Timberlake’s concert period and New Year holidays, average room rates have declined, putting pressure on profitability.
Otarashvili links this trend to a shift in visitor geography, particularly the rapid growth of arrivals from India and China due to new direct flights.
“We now have a very large number of Indian guests, who have very specific demands. They spend very little - on food, shopping or entertainment. After they leave, we face significant additional costs: rooms often require repairs. Yes, India is a huge market, but it would be far better to focus on business tourism, attracting high-spending visitors - luxury weddings, conferences and large forums,” she said.
According to Otarashvili, the hospitality industry has already begun adapting to Asian markets, some hotels have hired Indian chefs, and menus have been adjusted to cater to new visitor preferences. However, she notes that these changes come with reluctance:
“We made many adjustments to meet these guests’ needs. Some hotels even hired Indian chefs. We changed parts of the menu as well. But we’re not doing this joyfully, because our unique product - Georgian cuisine and wine - is not what these tourists are interested in. There’s a disconnect.”
She argues that Georgia should shift focus away from mass tourism and toward niche, high-value segments such as wine tourism, gastronomy, wellness, and experiential travel - areas where the country can offer a truly distinctive product and improve its competitiveness on the global tourism map.
