Chinese visitor numbers to Georgia rise by 23% in nine months, setting a record

JAMnews

Tbilisi

Between January and September 2026, Georgia received 119,081 visitors from China. According to the Georgian National Tourism Administration, this represents a 23.6% increase on the same period last year.

The figure for the first nine months of 2026 marks a 15-year record. Excluding 2025 and 2024, the number of Chinese visitors in those nine months alone exceeds the annual total for every other year since 2011, when the authorities began collecting these statistics.

According to data from the Georgian National Tourism Administration, the number of visitors arriving in Georgia from China over the past several years has been as follows:

2025 — 127,895 visitors;
2024 — 88,583 visitors;
2023 — 48,304 visitors;
2022 — 7,380 visitors;
2021 — 3,468 visitors;
2020 — 4,363 visitors;
2019 — 48,071 visitors;
2018 — 31,855 visitors;
2017 — 18,179 visitors;
2016 — 10,847 visitors;
2015 — 6,849 visitors;
2014 — 5,919 visitors;
2013 — 6,641 visitors;
2012 — 7,633 visitors;
2011 — 4,848 visitors.

The figures show that the number of visitors from China nearly doubled in 2024 compared with 2023, and continued to grow in 2025. The total for the first nine months of 2026 has already approached the full-year figure for 2025.

Despite the increase in visitors from China, the overall number of visits by international travellers to Georgia remained virtually unchanged in the first nine months of 2026.

According to the tourism administration, Georgia recorded 6,112,078 visits by international travellers between January and September. This was just 0.04% higher than in the same period in 2025.

The figures therefore show that the number of visitors from China is growing, while the overall number of international travellers remains almost unchanged.

Background

The rise in visitors from China comes amid deepening ties between Georgia and China. China is gradually becoming a key strategic partner for Georgia.

In July 2023, following a visit to China by former Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili, the two countries announced a strategic partnership.

On 10 April 2024, they signed an agreement introducing visa-free travel for holders of ordinary passports. The agreement came into force on 28 May that year. It allows citizens of both countries to stay in the other country without a visa for up to 30 days.

Opinion: 'China gets more from Georgia than Georgia gets from China'

Conflict analyst Giorgi Koberidze argues that economic and political relations between Georgia and China should be clearly distinguished

In July 2025, representatives of the Georgian and Chinese foreign ministries held political consultations in Beijing. In June 2026, the presidents of Georgia and China, Mikheil Kavelashvili and Xi Jinping, exchanged messages to mark the 34th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries. During this exchange, they agreed to elevate bilateral ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership.

According to the Georgian Foreign Ministry, co-operation with China covers areas including the economy, trade, investment, transport, culture and humanitarian ties.

Many experts, however, take a sceptical view of such close ties and the strategic partnership with China.

Giorgi Koberidze, head of the Centre for Political Research at GIPA (the Georgian Institute of Public Affairs) and an expert on conflict issues, argues that although economic co-operation between Georgia and China is significant, Tbilisi is not achieving the political results one would expect from a strategic partnership.

Another conflict expert, Paata Zakareishvili, notes, that China has never voted in Georgia’s favour. He argues that China effectively attaches little importance to its relations with Georgia, and that the Georgian Dream party is trying to mislead voters by building this partnership.