Tourist flow to Kyrgyzstan grows by 6.2 percent for 5 years

The number of tourists who visited Kyrgyzstan increased by 6.2 percent for 5 years. The National Statistical Committee of the Kyrgyz Republic says.

It is noted that 1,273 million tourists visited Kyrgyzstan in 2016. The income from reception of foreign citizens is estimated at $ 415.6 million (compared to 2015 it increased by 1.4 percent). The number of tourists grew by 8,000. In 2016, Kyrgyzstan was mostly visited by tourists from Kazakhstan, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Germany, Turkey, China and the United States.

According to the data of the National Statistical Committee, 58.3 percent of those who entered Kyrgyzstan are people who spent their holidays in the republic, 30.6 percent paid business and professional visits, 7 percent came for treatment. At the same time, unorganized rest is gaining increasing popularity among the tourists.

It should be noted that the number of hotels increased and the number of travel agencies — reduced in the last five years. At the same time, the achievements in the tourism sector remain insignificant. The tourism sector accounted for only 4.7 percent of GDP, increasing by just 0.1 percent over the five-year period.