Georgia’s protected areas hosted 1,015,024 visitors between January and October of this year, with the figure surpassing pre-pandemic numbers from 2019 and hitting record-high numbers, the Agency of Protected Areas said on Thursday.

Revealing the statistics, the Agency said the number of foreign visitors to the country’s protected areas had increased by 29 percent compared to 2022 and comprised 58 percent of the total number.

In 2023 Georgia’s top most visited protected areas were Martvili Canyon, Mtirala National Park, Prometheus Cave and Sataplia Cave in the west of the country, and Tsalka Canyon in the south.

Highlighting the importance of developing ecotourism in the country, the Agency said up to ₾22.5 million ($8,295,848) would be invested in protected areas for development of ecotourism.

It also said hiking trails with the distance of up to 1,200 kilometres and other tourist and recreational infrastructure was being set up in 15 protected areas across the country in order to make travelling “even more comfortable and safe”.

agenda.ge