"Almost two thirds of tourists from Israel prefer to rest in Georgia rather than in Turkey"

This opinion was expressed by the founder of the Federation of Hotels and Restaurants of Georgia, Shalva Alaverdashvili.

Israel took the fifth place in the list of countries from which the largest number of tourists arrived in Georgia in January-September 2023 - 182,651 people. This is 17.5% more than in the three quarters of 2022 and 21% more than in 2019 before the pandemic. In general, Israeli citizens are one of the main sources of income for the country.

Alaverdashvili noted that large travel companies are already contacting them and booking places in advance. He added that bookings from Israel are expected to increase from February.

Speaking about highly paid tourists, Alaverdashvili mentioned that in 2022 many guests from the Persian Gulf countries visited Georgia, but in 2023 they preferred Turkish resorts. Leaving this in the past, Georgia hopes to bring all these tourists back to its borders.

He also provided information about the tourist situation in Georgia during the winter season. In the New Year period, most of the hotels in Tbilisi and in the ski resorts were completely filled. Guests from the Persian Gulf countries preferred mountain resorts, while Armenian tourists prevailed in Tbilisi.

Prices for accommodation in Tbilisi, both in branded and non-branded hotels, have decreased due to the competitive environment. The average price for a group booking was about $50 per person for a double room with breakfast.

Tourism in Georgia has started to recover from the recession due to the pandemic since the summer of 2021. In 2022, 5.4 million international travelers visited Georgia, which is 188.5% more than in the previous year. Tourism is one of the country's main sources of income, and this record is expected to be broken in 2023. The authorities plan to allocate 236 million lari for the development of tourism in 2024.