4.6% Growth of Bulgarians' Trips Abroad

The number of trips of Bulgarian citizens abroad in May 2019 was 762.1 thousand, or 4.6% above those registered in May 2018, NSI reported, quoted by BNT. The increase in the number of trips of Bulgarian citizens compared to the same month of the previous year is reported for: Italy - by 9.5%, Republic of Northern Macedonia - 7.3%, Turkey - by 6.5%, Romania by 5.6%, Greece by 3.4% Germany - by 3.3%, and others. At the same time, the number of trips of Bulgarian citizens decreased to: Austria - 6.8%, Poland - 5.0%, Belgium - 3.4%, Serbia - 0.3%, and others.

Compared to May 2018, there was an increase for all monitored purposes: "others" - by 6.1%, "official business" - by 5.5%, and “vacations" by 2.1%. The largest relative share of the total number of trips of Bulgarian citizens abroad in May 2019 formed the trips with other purposes (visiting, training, visiting cultural and sporting events) - 39.1%, followed by excursions - 33.5 %, and for business purposes - 27.4%. In May 2019 the largest number of trips of Bulgarian citizens were made to: Greece - 190.5 thousand, Turkey - 157.0 thousand, Romania - 61.3 thousand, Republic of Northern Macedonia - 48.3 thousand, Germany - 44.8 thousand, Serbia - 44.7 thousand, Italy - 31.6 thousand, Austria - 24.2 thousand, the United Kingdom - 21.9 thousand, Spain - 21.3 thousand.

In May 2019, foreign visitors to Bulgaria were 946.7 thousand or 0.9% more than in May 2018. There was an increase in trips for the following purposes: "other" (including visits and transit) - by 2.1% and "for business purposes" - by 1.7%, while those for “vacations” decreased by 0.9%. Transit passages across the country are 26.9% (254.6 thousand) of all visits of foreigners to Bulgaria.

The share of European Union’s citizens from the total number of foreigners who visited Bulgaria in May 2019, was 62.7% or 0.7% less than in the same month of the previous year. Visits by UK citizens increased by 14.1%, Austria by 6.7%, Greece by 2.9%, Poland by 0.7%, Romania by 0.3%, and others. At the same time, the number of visits by citizens from Italy - by 17.2%, Germany - by 0.5%, France - by 0.5%, and others decreased.

The visits of citizens from the group "Other European countries" increased by 3.3%, with the largest increase of the visits of citizens from Ukraine - by 29.8%.

In May 2019, the share of visits for other purposes was 41.9%, followed by visits for vacation and excursion 38.4% and 19.7% for official purposes.

The largest number of visits to Bulgaria in May 2019 came from: Romania - 264.0 thousand, Greece - 103.6 thousand, Turkey - 99.0 thousand, Germany - 68.5 thousand, Serbia - 55.3 thousand, Republic of Northern Macedonia - 43.0 thousand, the United Kingdom - 33.0 thousand, Ukraine - 32.2 thousand, the Russian Federation - 28.3 thousand, Poland - 22.0 thousand.

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