Tourism in Georgia (country)

Georgian National Tourism Administration logo
"Tourism in Georgia" redirects here. For tourism in the U.S. state of Georgia, see Georgia (U.S. state) § Tourism.

Tourism in Georgia, a country in the Caucasus with an ancient history, is actively encouraged by the Cabinet of Georgia through its Department of Tourism and Resorts of Georgia.[1] In 2011, 1,318,968 tourists visited the country. By the end of 2015, the annual number of tourists in Georgia reached 2,278,562 people.[2] The culture of Georgia is ancient and the local people are a mixture of ancient and modern.[3]

Some countries attract one instantly. Georgia seduces you the moment you set foot on its soil
— Kalpana Sahni, quotation from the Official Georgian government tourism website[1]

Arrivals by country

Top 15 countries by arrivals in Georgia (first 5 months, 2016)
International Travel Statistics of Georgia for 2015 year

Most visitors arriving to Georgia on short term basis in 2015 were from the following countries of nationality:[4]

Rank Country Number
1 Armenia 1,468,888
2 Azerbaijan 1,393,257
3 Turkey 1,391,721
4 Russia 926,144
5 Ukraine 141,734
6 Israel 59,487
7 Poland 41,425
8 Germany 36,826
9 Kazakhstan 36,777
10 United States 31,147

Culture

Freedom square in Tbilisi and the city hall

According to the Department of Tourism and Resorts of Georgia, the word wine comes from the word g'vino of the Georgian language, and the oldest archaeological remains related to grape seeds and winemaking have been found in Georgia, while today the country has over 500 varieties of grape.[5]

Ecotourism

25% of Georgia's territory is designated as protected national parks, and 40% of the national territory is covered by forests.[5]

Safety

A travel advisory had been announced during and after the 2008 South Ossetia war, with a severity described as "extreme danger", as there were risks from land mines and other inconveniences that were a result of war.[3][6] Countries that have issued travel warnings included New Zealand,[7] but not limited to it.

Over time situation has changed and according to International Crime Index Georgia is the 6th the most safe country in the world (2016).[8]

Practical information

Georgia uses the standard Europlug (220 V, 50 Hz), the international dialing prefix is +995, it uses the metric system, and its currency is the lari (GEL or L).[3]

Notes and references

  1. 1 2 tourism.gov.ge
  2. ↑ http://police.ge/files/pdf/vizitorebi/2016/საზღვრის კვეთის სტატისტიკა (2016 წლის იანვარი).pdf საქართველოს საზღვარზე გადაადგილებულ ვიზიტორთა სტატისტიკური მონაცემები 2016 წელი, იანვარი]
  3. 1 2 3 lonelyplanet.com
  4. ↑ 2015 GEORGIAN TOURISM IN FIGURES STRUCTURE & INDUSTRY DATA
  5. 1 2 tourism.gov.ge/discover.php
  6. ↑ lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/forum.jspa
  7. ↑ safetravel.govt.nz
  8. ↑ "Crime Index for Country 2016". www.numbeo.com. Numbeo. 2016. Retrieved 25 June 2016.

See also

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Georgia.
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