Azerbaijan’s tourism sector faces minor dip in Q1 2025 amid shifting global trends

Azerbaijan saw a slight decrease in tourist arrivals during the first quarter of 2025, with a total of 508,100 visitors between January and March, marking a 1.1 per cent decrease compared to the same period in 2024, the State Statistical Committee said.

Despite the decline in the number of tourists year-on-year, the figures still show a significant gap when compared to pre-pandemic levels. The current tourist traffic is 16.8 per cent lower than the January-March period of 2019, before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Caliber.Az reports.

Citizens of Russia made up the largest group of visitors, accounting for 24.7 per cent of the total arrivals. This was followed by tourists from Türkiye (18.3%), India (10.8%), and Iran (9.8%). Smaller shares of visitors came from Georgia, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Uzbekistan, China, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Israel, Kuwait, Belarus, and other countries. In total, Azerbaijan welcomed visitors from 167 countries during the reported period.

Gender data revealed that 71.6 per cent of the arrivals were men, while 28.4 per cent were women.

Notably, some countries saw significant growth in the number of visitors compared to last year. Arrivals from Israel increased by four times, Tajikistan by two times, and China by 1.8 times. Other notable increases were observed in arrivals from Jordan (1.6 times), Spain (1.6 times), India (47.6%), and several other nations. Conversely, the number of arrivals from the European Union dropped by 7.8 per cent, while visitors from the Persian Gulf countries decreased by 9.3 per cent. Arrivals from CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States) countries also saw a decline of 10.7 per cent.

Air travel remained the dominant mode of transport, with 69.9 per cent of tourists arriving by air. Additionally, 28.4 per cent traveled by rail or road, while 1.7 per cent came by sea.

Regarding Azerbaijani nationals, there was a slight decrease in outbound travel, with 468,900 citizens traveling abroad during the first quarter of 2025, a 0.7 per cent decrease compared to the previous year. However, there was a notable increase in the number of Azerbaijani citizens traveling to Iran (24.1%) and Georgia (16.4%). Meanwhile, the number of Azerbaijani tourists heading to Türkiye and Russia decreased by 5.4 per cent and 25.3 per cent, respectively.

Overall, Azerbaijan’s tourism sector has experienced a mixed performance in early 2025, with growth in specific markets tempered by declines in others. The broader outlook for the year will depend on several factors, including geopolitical developments and the overall global recovery from the pandemic.

By Vafa Guliyeva