The number of international arrivals was up 2.1% y/y to 0.37mn in February 2017. Out of the top five source markets, there was growth from Armenia (+7.7% y/y), Russia (+31.4% y/y), and Ukraine (+10.6% y/y), while arrivals were down from Azerbaijan (-6.6% y/y) and Turkey (-21.0% y/y).
The number of international arrivals was up 10.5% y/y to 0.76mn visitors in 2M17. The number of visitors increased from all major countries except for Turkey (-11.6% y/y) in 2M17, while the number of visitors from Azerbaijan was flat (+0.1% y/y). Russia and Ukraine posted double-digit growth rates, while Armenia (+18.2% y/y) was the single largest contributor to overall growth.
While the top four source markets accounted for 86.1% of international arrivals in 2M17, secondary source markets also posted robust performances. The number of Iranian visitors is up almost 5.4x to over 15,000, while the number of Israeli visitors during the same period is up 65.0% y/y to over 3,000 visitors. Arrivals from the EU were up 21.9% y/y in 2M17 with Germany (+35.4% y/y), Poland (+30.2% y/y), and UK (+26.2% y/y) driving the growth.
The tourist category continues to drive arrival growth in February 2017. The number of overnight visitors (‘tourist’ category) was up 16.4% y/y and accounted for 38.0% of total international arrivals. Same-day arrivals were down 9.1% y/y, while the number of transit visitors was up 7.6% y/y in February 2017.
