ArmInfo.There is a widespread opinion that middle-aged and older tourists prefer to visit Armenia, but this trend has its advantages. The Chairperson of the State Tourism Committee of the RA Ministry of Economy Susanna Safaryan stated this during a February 26 press conference, answering a question by ArmInfo correspondent.
"Older tourists, unlike young people who have already made it and are solvent, do not spare funds for their trip, which cannot but have a positive economic effect," she explained.
At the same time, Safaryan noted that, despite the economic benefit for the country from tourists of this age group, the Tourism Committee intends this year to carry out activities aimed at attracting young people and to ensure the availability of services for them.
However, she said that thanks to the digital tools introduced since the New Year, the Tourism Committee will be able to obtain more detailed statistics regarding the age of tourists, whether they are visiting Armenia for the first time, and other important characteristics. It should be noted that, according to the Statistical Committee of the Republic of Armenia, in 2019 Armenia was visited by 1.894 million tourists, which is 14.7% more than in 2018 (against growth by 10.5% a year earlier). And 1.868 million people left Armenia for tourist purposes, and this is 15.1% higher than last year's indicator (against growth by 9.5% a year earlier). It is noteworthy that in 2018-2019 a high positive balance of tourist flow was recorded, while in 2016 the balance was negative - there were more tourists leaving Armenia for tourist trips than tourists who visited Armenia.