Covid-19: Flight suspensions, border closures devastated Bulgaria’s April visitor numbers
The number of arrivals of visitors from abroad to Bulgaria in April 2020 was just less than 89 per cent lower in April 2020 than in April 2019 as the suspension of international flights and closures of land borders because of Covid-19 took effect, the National Statistical Institute (NSI) said on May 29.
The April 2020 figure was 74.1 per cent lower than the March 2020 figure, the NSI said.
The institute said that there was a “collapse” in all categories of arrivals.
Trips to Bulgaria in the “holiday and recreation” category dropped by 99.8 per cent, business visits by 84.5 per cent, and in the category “other” – including transits – by 80.6 per cent.
Transit passes through Bulgaria accounted for 62.9 per cent of all visits by foreigners to Bulgaria, the NSI said.
Citizens of other EU countries accounted for 34.5 per cent of the total number of visits by foreigners to Bulgaria, about 93.1 per cent less than in April 2019.
Visits by foreigners in the “other European countries” dropped by 81.5 per cent.
In turn, the number of trips abroad by residents of Bulgaria was just less than 88 per cent in April 2020 than in April 2019, and 67.4 per cent lower than in March 2020, the NSI said.
(Photo of Sofia Airport: Bulgaria’s Interior Ministry)
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