In the recent years, tourism has become one of the most important and developing sectors of the Albanian economy and has been considered by the government as one of the main engines for national growth.

Albania is being recommended more and more each year as a tourist destination by various tour operators and international travel guides

Tourism aims to meet the demands of local and foreign tourists for cultural visits, leisure, health and sports, accommodation, food and entertainment, etc., by positively changing the economic structure, creating new jobs and generating revenue, as well as contributing to the social and economic development of the country.

From north to south, each of the territories preserves with fanaticism its identity in the offer, stimulating the curiosity of visitors to explore.

In this framework the Albanian Center for Economic Research (ACER) contracted by the Albanian Development Fund (ADF) conducted a tourist survey in 9 areas in which the Project for Integrated Urban and Tourism Development (PIUTD) is being implemented by the Albanian Development Fund.

This year, the survey was conducted from 1-15 August in 4 urban areas: Saranda, Berat, Permet and Gjirokastra, along with touristic areas: Blue Eye, Porto Palermo, Zvernec, Orik and Benja.

For the main findings of the quantitative and qualitative study for 2019, the results of 2018 and 2016 have been used as a comparative basis, among which we canhighlight.

3 out of 4 tourists are international, 90 % of international tourists come from Europe (mainly France, Italy and Germany) and 10 % come from Canada, United States, Asia and Australia.

The number of tourists staying between 4-7 days has increased significantly (39.5 %), compared to 2018 and 2016.

90.6 % of tourists visited Albania independently, against 9.4 % of tourists who were part of tourist packages.

Activities such as exploring natural parks, churches and local gastronomy have resulted with highest level of satisfaction.

There has been an increase in the satisfaction with quality of services (from an average rating of 2.86 to 3.1) at entry points in Albania, compared to 2018.

In 2019, tourists spent on average 47 Euro/day.

In regard to tourist counting in the 9 areas where the survey was conducted, results show that the coastal areas have the largest tourist influx, taking into consideration the time period during which the survey was conducted (August). Saranda and Berat are the tourist destinations with the largest number of businesses when compared to other destinations.  

The purpose of the survey is how visitors perceive existing tourism products in urban centers where PIUTD is being implemented. Providing useful data for destination marketing in the coming years.