site.btaEurostat Reports 11.9% Tourism Industry Growth in Bulgaria

The estimated number of nights spent at tourist accommodation establishments in Bulgaria in 2023 exceeded 27 million, with an increase of 11.9% compared to 2022, according to Eurostat figures, the Tourism Ministry said in a press release on Tuesday.

Foreign tourists spent some 14.7 million overnight stays in accommodation establishments in Bulgaria in 2023, while Bulgarian residents spent over 12.3 million nights as tourists in their homeland.

Bulgaria ranks fifth in the EU in terms of growth in the number of overnight stays in 2023. The increase of 11.9% is significantly higher than the EU average of 6.3%.

Some 48% more Italian tourists visited Bulgaria in 2023, compared to 2022. A total of 22% is the growth in the number of tourist visits from Turkiye. Turkish tourists were attracted mainly by urban and cultural tourism.