Tourism has slowed down during February with an increase in the entry of foreigners into the country. Albania received 516,058 foreign tourists in February, a 7.4% rise compared to the same month a year earlier, the country’s statistics office said on Tuesday.

Last February, Albania received 480,539 foreign tourists, a 55.4% increase compared to February 2023.

The number of domestic tourists rose 8.5% on the year to 543,216 in February 2025, INSTAT said in a monthly report. The majority of foreign tourists to Albania in February, totaling 413,957, came from the Southern Europe region.

Foreign tourist arrivals to Albania reached 11.7 million in 2024, up 15.2% year-on-year.

In February 2025, 543,803 Albanian citizens left the territory, by 7.2 percent compared to February 2024. The departures of foreign citizens from the territory of Albania during February 2025 totaled 523,151. Compared to the same period a year ago, this indicator has increased by 5.5% the INSTAT publication states.

At least 96% of foreign nationals entering Albania are from the European region. Southern Europe accounts for 83% of foreign nationals entering from the European continent, followed by Western Europe with 6%.

According to INSTAT, the purpose of entry into Albanian territory of foreign nationals, in 97 percent of cases, is for personal purposes, dominated by entries for holidays, visiting relatives, etc. In February 2025, this indicator marked an increase of 7.4 percent compared to February 2024. There has also been an increase in the entry of foreign nationals for business and professional purposes in February, by 29.6 percent.

Tour operators expect that 2025 will have a similar performance to 2024 as far as the sector is concerned linking this to the entry of several new markets with guarantee contracts, a growing interest both from traditional markets operating this form but also from those coming individually.