Azerbaijan experienced a significant increase in tourist arrivals during the first eight months of 2024, with 1.748 million visitors from 183 countries, marking a 30.1% rise compared to the same period in 2023, Azernews reports.

According to the State Statistics Committee, 28.7% of visitors came from Russia, followed by Turkiye (16.2%), India (9.2%), Iran (8.1%), and Saudi Arabia (4.4%). Other notable sources of tourists included Georgia, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, and the UAE. The gender breakdown of visitors was 66.8% male and 33.2% female.

Some countries saw even higher increases in arrivals, with the number of tourists from India increasing 2.4 times, South Korea 2.2 times, and China 2 times. Other countries like Spain, Kyrgyzstan, the Philippines, Kazakhstan, and Pakistan also saw significant jumps in visitor numbers.

The number of visitors from Gulf countries rose by 34.5%, reaching 307,200 people. Tourists from the European Union increased by 27.5%, and arrivals from CIS countries saw a 20.5% rise, totaling 663,600 visitors.

In terms of transportation, 75.6% of visitors traveled by air, 23.2% used rail and road, and 1.2% arrived by sea.