"Poor" tourists, the average expenditure is around 410 euros/person per trip

2024-05-11 08:10:00, Aktualitet CNA

"Poor" tourists, the average expenditure is around 410 euros/person

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Last year, about 10.2 million foreign citizens visited Albania according to INSTAT data, an increase of 35% compared to the previous year.

According to the data of the balance of payments of the Bank of Albania, it is estimated that foreign tourists spent a total of about 4.2 billion euros in Albania during 2023. The spending of foreign tourists increased by 47% compared to 2022.

On average, tourists spend around 412 euros per person. Based on this data, according to the representative of the Association of Bars and Restaurants, Enri Jahja, the foreign tourist visiting the country cannot even be considered a spender of an average budget.

Based on the type of restaurants that are preferred or frequented by foreign tourists, Jahja says that they rather choose the structures where food is offered, mainly meatballs and traditional Albanian dishes because of the economical prices.

"Based on the data on expenses per person, which are calculated around 420 euros, it turns out that a category C tourist has come to Albania, i.e. a "cheap" tourist who spends less than an Albanian spends when he visits the cheapest resort in the summer months. Turkey", says Enri Jahja from the Association of Bars and Restaurants.

The final consumption of the population in 2023, according to INSTAT data, is 1,290 trillion ALL, or about 12 billion euros (calculated with the average exchange rate of the euro for 2023, worth 108 ALL). The consumption of foreign tourists during the summer months accounts for 35% of the annual consumption of the local population.

Despite the growing spending of tourists (which increased by 47% compared to 2022) the final consumption of the population during 2023 has increased by about 3% compared to the previous year.

The slight increase in the final consumption of the population has also been influenced by emigration, especially young people who make up the main weight of consumers.

On the other hand, the expenses of Albanian citizens for traveling abroad increased rapidly.

The Bank of Albania estimates these expenses at 2.3 billion euros, an increase of 32% compared to a year ago. On average, the expenses of Albanians abroad are calculated around 332 euros per person.

Last year, according to INSTAT data, 6.9 million Albanian citizens went abroad. Compared to 2022, the number of departures by Albanians has increased by about 18%.

While remittances from emigration in 2023 were 929 million euros. Compared to 2022, remittances increased by 11%./ Monitor