A total of 697,800 Georgian resident travellers took a trip outside of the country in the second quarter of 2023, with most of the visits being made to Turkey (236,700) and Russia (79,900), the latest data from the National Statistics Office of Georgia shows.

The next most in-demand destinations were Armenia (13.9 percent), Azerbaijan (2.6 percent), EU member countries (16.7 percent) and other states (10.9 percent).

The Office said the number of Georgian residents travelling abroad had increased by 35.4 percent year-on-year, while most of the trips (47.2%) were made by travellers of the 31-50 age group.

Georgian residents spent ₾514.3 million ($196.31mln) while travelling abroad in Q2 of 2023, which was a 12.6 percent increase y/y. The average expenditure of the visit decreased by 15.9 and amounted to ₾946 ($361.09).

Georgians spent the highest amount of money on shopping ($85.39mln), followed by foods and drinks ($54.51mln) and accommodation ($27.29mln).

Visiting friends of relatives was the most common reason indicated for travel outside Georgia, while other most cited reasons for visiting other countries included:

• Visiting friends/relatives – 181,000 visits (33.3% of total number of visits)
• Shopping – 180,900 visits (33.3%)
• Holiday/Leisure/Recreation – 79.4 visits (14.6%)
• Business – 74,500 visits (13.7%)
• Health and medical care – 12,900 visits (2.4%)
• Other – 14,800 visits (2.7%)

In Q2, the average number of nights spent during outbound visits was six, which is 5.4 percent higher than the figure indicated in Q2 of 2022 (5.7 nights).

The Office also said 97.2 percent of outbound travels had been repeat visits.