“Tourism Doing Business – Investing in Armenia” guides investors and tourism professionals seeking in-depth knowledge about Armenia’s tourism sector. It allows them to make informed decisions by showcasing Armenia’s unique cultural heritage, robust economic growth, and supportive business environment.
Armenia is a rising tourism destination. At the same time, its dedication to economic reforms, infrastructure development, and the promotion of foreign direct investment has positioned it as the fastest-growing economy in Europe. These new Guidelines underscore Armenia’s commitment to fostering a conducive environment for international capital and showcase the opportunities the country’s tourism sector offers to investors everywhere. UN Tourism Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili
Armenia: An Attractive Destination
Over recent years, Armenia has enjoyed notable growth as a tourist destination. International tourist to the country reached 2.3 million in 2023, a 22.3% increase from 2019. This growth significantly outpaces the regional average in Central and Eastern Europe. Additionally, international tourism receipts in Armenia reached USD 3 billion in 2023, a 97% increase on 2019. The Guidelines explore the factors that help make Armenia such an attractive destination for both tourists and investors, including:
- Location: Armenia is strategically located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, serving as a gateway between these regions.
- Accessibility: The country offers a visa-free entry policy for citizens of approximately 70 countries
- Connectivity: Armenia provides direct flights from over 50 cities across Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. Its principal airports collectively handle over 4 million passengers annually.
Recent years have seen Armenia exhibit remarkable economic resilience and growth. International tourist arrivals are up almost 25% on pre-pandemic levels, while the arrival of investments across all sectors further illustrates the confidence in Armenia’s tourism potential. We are proud to be working with Armenia to showcase it as an investment destination through these latest Guidelines from UN Tourism. UN Tourism Executive Director Natalia Bayona
Opportunities for Investors
Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflows totalled close to USD 1 billion in 2022, the highest on record. This trend continued into 2023, with FDI totaling USD 443 million according to UNCTAD. Furthermore, recent updates from Armenian authorities suggest that the figure for 2023 is around USD 580 million, reflecting growing international confidence in Armenia’s market.
The new Guidelines analyse the factors contributing to make Armenia, and its tourism sector, an attractive proposition for foreign investors, most notably:
- Economic growth and stability: Armenia enjoyed GDP growth of 8.7% in 2023, the fastest in Europe, with expectation growth of 6.0% in 2024. The economy has also experienced steady expansion driven by strategic sectors such as tourism, IT, and agriculture. The Central Bank of Armenia has successfully maintained low and stable inflation rates, while the country also boasts a highly educated workforce with a literacy rate exceeding 99%.
- Favorable climate: The Foreign Investments Law allows unrestricted foreign capital participation, ensuring equal treatment for foreign and domestic investors. The government offers attractive tax incentives, such as VAT exemptions for tourism services and significant tax breaks for operators of tourist accommodations.
- Strategic partnerships: Membership in the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) provides access to a single market of approximately 185 million consumers. The EU-Armenia Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement (CEPA) also strengthens ties with the European Union.
Related links:
About UN Tourism
The World Tourism Organization (UN Tourism) is the United Nations agency responsible for the promotion of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism.
As the leading international organization in the field of tourism, UN Tourism promotes tourism as a driver of economic growth, inclusive development and environmental sustainability and offers leadership and support to the sector in advancing knowledge and tourism policies worldwide.
Our Priorities
Mainstreaming tourism in the global agenda: Advocating the value of tourism as a driver of socio-economic growth and development, its inclusion as a priority in national and international policies and the need to create a level playing field for the sector to develop and prosper.
Promoting sustainable tourism development: Supporting sustainable tourism policies and practices: policies which make optimal use of environmental resources, respect the socio-cultural authenticity of host communities and provide socio-economic benefits for all.
Fostering knowledge, education and capacity building: Supporting countries to assess and address their needs in education and training, as well as providing networks for knowledge creation and exchange.
Improving tourism competitiveness: Improving UN Tourism Members’ competitiveness through knowledge creation and exchange, human resources development and the promotion of excellence in areas such as policy planning, statistics and market trends, sustainable tourism development, marketing and promotion, product development and risk and crisis management.
Advancing tourism’s contribution to poverty reduction and development: Maximizing the contribution of tourism to poverty reduction and achieving the SDGs by making tourism work as a tool for development and promoting the inclusion of tourism in the development agenda.
Building partnerships: Engaging with the private sector, regional and local tourism organizations, academia and research institutions, civil society and the UN system to build a more sustainable, responsible and competitive tourism sector.
Our Structure
Members: An intergovernmental organization, UN Tourism has 160 Member States, 6 Associate Members, 2 Observers and over 500 Affiliate Members.
Organs: The General Assembly is the supreme organ of the Organization. The Executive Council take all measures, in consultation with the Secretary-General, for the implementation of the decisions and recommendations of the General Assembly and reports to the Assembly.
Secretariat: UN Tourism headquarters are based in Madrid, Spain. The Secretariat is led by the Secretary-General and organized into departments covering issues such as sustainability, education, tourism trends and marketing, sustainable development, statistics and the Tourism Satellite Account (TSA), destination management, ethics and risk and crisis management. The Technical Cooperation and Silk Road Department carries out development projects in over 100 countries worldwide, while the Regional Departments for Africa, the Americas, Asia and the Pacific, Europe and the Middle East serve as the link between UN Tourism and its 160 Member States. The Affiliate Members Department represents UN Tourism’s 500 plus Affiliate members.
UN Tourism Communications Department
+34 91 567 8100
UN Tourism
Please visit:
Our Sponsor