Tourism in Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan recorded a total of nine million tourists in 2019, ranking 25th in the world in absolute terms.That smaller countries regularly perform lower in a comparison of the absolute number of guests, is obvious. By putting the tourist numbers in relation to the population of Kyrgyzstan, the result is much more comparable picture: With 1.3 tourists per resident, Kyrgyzstan ranked 40th in the world. In Central Asia, it ranked 1st.
In 2020, Kyrgyzstan generated around 195.00 million US dollars in the tourism sector alone. This corresponds to 2.3 percent of its the gross domestic product and approximately 15 percent of all international tourism receipts in Central Asia.
Worldwide comparisons:
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Back to overview: Kyrgyzstan
Development of the tourism sector in Kyrgyzstan from 1995 to 2019
The following chart shows the number of tourist arrivals registered in Kyrgyzstan each year. Anyone who spends at least one night in the country but does not live there for more than 12 months is considered a tourist. Insofar as the survey included the purpose of the trip, business trips and other non-tourism travel purposes have already been excluded. The number of people passing through within the same day, and e.g., crew members of ships or flights are also not considered tourists in most countries. If the same person travels in and out more than once within the same year, each visit counts again.Data in the chart are given in millions of tourists. The red line represents the average of all 5 countries in Central Asia.
Revenues from tourism
In 1995, tourism revenues amounted to 5.00 million USD, or about 0.30 percent of the gross national product. This corresponded to about 36,000 tourists at that time and roughly 139 USD per person. Within 25 years, the country's dependence on tourism has increased drastically. Before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, sales were $708.00 million billion, 8.0 percent of gross national product. Thus, each visitor spent an average of $83 on their vacation in Kyrgyzstan.In 2020, tourist receipts plummeted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Of the $708.00 million billion (2019), only $195.00 million billion remained. This is a 72 percent decrease in Kyrgyzstan.
All data for Kyrgyzstan in detail
| Year | Number | Receipts | % of GNP | Receipts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 8.51 m | 708.00 m $ | 8.0 % | 83 $ |
| 2018 | 6.95 m | 518.00 m $ | 6.3 % | 75 $ |
| 2017 | 4.57 m | 480.00 m $ | 6.2 % | 105 $ |
| 2016 | 3.85 m | 477.00 m $ | 7.0 % | 124 $ |
| 2015 | 4.00 m | 482.00 m $ | 7.2 % | 121 $ |
| 2014 | 3.79 m | 468.00 m $ | 6.3 % | 123 $ |
| 2013 | 4.13 m | 585.00 m $ | 8.0 % | 142 $ |
| 2012 | 3.39 m | 486.00 m $ | 7.4 % | 143 $ |
| 2011 | 3.03 m | 405.00 m $ | 6.5 % | 134 $ |
| 2010 | 1.22 m | 212.00 m $ | 4.4 % | 173 $ |
| 2009 | 2.45 m | 300.00 m $ | 6.4 % | 122 $ |
| 2008 | 2.38 m | 569.00 m $ | 11.07 % | 239 $ |
| 2007 | 1.66 m | 392.00 m $ | 10.31 % | 237 $ |
| 2006 | 766,000 | 189.00 m $ | 6.7 % | 247 $ |
| 2005 | 319,000 | 94.00 m $ | 3.8 % | 295 $ |
| 2004 | 398,000 | 92.00 m $ | 4.2 % | 231 $ |
| 2003 | 342,000 | 62.00 m $ | 3.2 % | 181 $ |
| 2002 | 183,000 | 48.00 m $ | 3.0 % | 262 $ |
| 2001 | 199,000 | 32.00 m $ | 2.1 % | 161 $ |
| 2000 | 173,000 | 20.00 m $ | 1.5 % | 116 $ |
| 1999 | 165,000 | 18.00 m $ | 1.4 % | 109 $ |
| 1998 | 290,000 | 12.00 m $ | 0.73 % | 41 $ |
| 1997 | 87,000 | 7.00 m $ | 0.40 % | 80 $ |
| 1996 | 42,000 | 4.00 m $ | 0.22 % | 95 $ |
| 1995 | 36,000 | 5.00 m $ | 0.30 % | 139 $ |
Our data on tourist numbers, revenues and expenditures are based on information from the World Tourism Organization. However, to ensure international comparability, the data for some years or countries were manually researched and corrected if they obviously included visitors without overnight stays. In these cases, the data were taken from the official communications of the respective national tourism authorities.
The World Tourism Organization additionally points out that in some countries, the number of tourists is only counted at airports, while in others they are also counted at border crossings or even hotels. A comprehensive and reliable indication is therefore hardly possible in any country.
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