Bulgaria reports growth in inbound tourism

A total of 8.88 million foreign tourists visited Bulgaria last year, reporting a 7.6 per cent growth compared to 2016.

Around 1.16 million tourists came from neighboring Greece, a figure that was up 8.5 per cent year-on-year, the Bulgarian tourism ministry said on its website. With 1.14 million tourists, Romania came second, with an increase of nearly four per cent, the ministry said.

Germany, Turkey and Russia came third, fourth and fifth respectively, the ministry said, adding that among these countries the most significant increase was the growth of Turkish visitors, at 12.5 per cent.

More than 61 per cent of foreign tourists arrived from European Union (EU) countries, increasing by 8.2 per cent compared to 2016.