Year-round tourism?! We’re still far from it, holiday makers leaving in October

A lot is being said about the so called “year-round tourism”, which means that tourists do not only visit the country during the summer season, but all year round. But is this kind of tourism becoming a reality for our country? Not yet. At least based on the figures supplied by authorities concerning the number of foreigners who have visited the country in the month of October. According to these figures, foreign tourists started to leave the country at the start of fall. This has also led to a fall in the number of people entering Albania compared to September 2018, although October this year was relatively warm and offered a suitable climate for holiday makers.”In the month of October 2018, the number of foreign citizens entering the country was 337.603.

Compared to October 2017, this number has fallen by 11%”, experts of the Institute of Statistics say, adding that during October, the biggest increase in the number of people visiting the country was registered by tourists coming from Switzerland with 134%. Meanwhile, the biggest fall was registered by the Poles with 71.8%. These figures show that during the month of October the country was visited by more people from Switzerland, who are used to winter tourism and not only summer tourism. Meanwhile, we’ve seen a decrease in the number of people who chose our country for the seaside, the Poles, who during the summer months represent the highest number of holiday makers visiting the country with an increase of 70%.

Did the introduction of the new tax for Kosovo in October bring fewer Kosovars to Albania?!

The fact that Kosovars are not visiting Albania like they used to do is something that experts have already noticed now. However, during this month of October this year, the drop in their number seems to relate to something else. What we’re seeing are the first effects of the introduction of the new toll charges in the highway that connects the two countries. So, starting from October 17, 2018, Albania-Kosovo highway saw the introduction of a new toll charge. According to the official data supplied by the Institute of Statistics, the number of people coming from Kosovo has dropped by 15%. From 94.723 Kosovo nationals who visited the country last October, this year, their number was 79.631.