YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 12, NOYAN TAPAN. 207,489 tourists visited Armenia in the first half of 2008, which was by 13.3% more than in the same period of 2007, the head of the Tourism Department of the RA Ministry of Economy Mekhak Apresian said at the September 11 press conference. The number of domestic tourists and those who travelled abroad also grew by 13% and 12.8% respectively. According to M. Apresian, this growth is conditioned by the state policy in the sector. He pointed out that but for the March 1 events, the number of tourists to Armenia would have been greater this year. The chairman of the Association of Armenian Tour Operators Robert Minasian described 2008 as a year of survival: a lot of tourists declined to come to Armenia because of the March 1 events and the war in Georgia. "They take a look at a map, see that Armenia is situated next to Georgia and think that it is not safe here," he explained. Besides, in his words, the respective departments of some countries, including Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, do not guarantee security of their citizens who intend to visit Armenia. M. Apresian said that the majority of tourists to Armenia are from Russia, Georgia, EU countries, Iran and the U.S. This year tourists from Thailand and Costa Rica have visited our country for the first time. It was mentioned that a tourist spends 700-800 USD during a visit to Armenia. In the first six months of 2008, 160-165 million USD was spent by tourists in Armenia, which exceeds by about 20 million USD the index of the same period of last year.

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