The number of international arrivals was up 4.3% y/y to 0.49mn in December 2016. Out of the top five source markets, there was growth from Armenia (+9.5% y/y), Azerbaijan (+3.9% y/y), and Ukraine (+14.0% y/y), while arrivals were down from Russia (-2.3% y/y) and Turkey (-16.7% y/y). Arrivals from the EU were up 28.6% y/y to over 13,400 visitors.
The number of international arrivals was up 7.6% y/y to 6.35 mn visitors in 2016. The number of visitors increased from all major countries except for Turkey (-9.9% y/y) in 2016. Russia and Ukraine posted double-digit growth rates, while Azerbaijan (+9.3% y/y) was the single largest contributor to overall growth. Travel inflows were up 11.7% y/y to US$ 1.68bn in 3Q16. Based on our estimates, travel inflows will reach approximately US$ 2.1bn in FY16.
While the top four source markets accounted for 83.6% of international arrivals in 2016, secondary source markets also posted robust performances. Ukraine, the 5th largest source market, posted a 21.9% y/y increase in 2016. The number of Iranian visitors is up almost 5.9x to 148,000, while the number of Israeli visitors during the same period is up 1.6x to over 92,000 visitors.
The tourist category continues to drive arrival growth in December 2016. The number of overnight visitors (‘tourist’ category) was up 14.8% y/y and accounted for 36.6% of total international arrivals. Same-day arrivals posted modest growth of 5.1% y/y, while the number of transit visitors declined 15.8% y/y in December 2016. The number of tourist arrivals is up 19.0% y/y to 2.7mn in 2016, compared to 2.3mn in 2015. The number of same-day visitors is up 4.4% y/y, while the number of transit visitors is down 5.7% y/y in 2016.
