Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said tourism should also be viewed through the lens of exports, arguing that it has a direct impact on the country’s economic revenues. He said the sector is showing very positive trends in Armenia and that the government should continue working consistently in that direction.
Speaking at a government meeting on Friday, Pashinyan said that under peaceful conditions there are no obstacles to fully using Armenia’s tourism potential. He also noted that the country is continuing its policy of export diversification.
According to the prime minister, discussions about exports should take into account not only seasonal agricultural shipments and other goods, but also tourism. “From a purely economic point of view, tourism is also an export, because a person who would have bought Armenian fruit or vegetables in their own country comes to Armenia and consumes them here,” Pashinyan said.
Data from the Tourism Committee show that more than 1.04 million foreign tourists visited Armenia in January-June 2026, up 14.8% from the same period of 2025. The largest number of visitors came from Russia with 416,743 people, or 40% of the total, followed by Georgia with 150,322 (14.4%) and Iran with 81,180 (7.8%).
For the whole of 2025, Armenia received more than 2.26 million tourists, which was 2.5% higher than a year earlier.
