According to the latest data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the agency served approximately 39,000 foreign visitors in the first six months of the year. Almost all of them arrived in Moldova, according to their stated purposes, “for vacation and recreation”.
Most travelers came from Romania, Italy, and Spain. The number of business trips also increased—by 17.6%—as did trips for medical treatment—by 15.0%.
However, foreign tourists prefer not to stay too long: according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the average length of stay in the country “decreased slightly from 4.7 to 4.4 days.”
In total, as noted by LOGOS PRESS, tour operators served 230,100 people in the first half of the year (+0.8%). According to statistical reports, Moldovan citizens preferred domestic tourism. The NBS reports that domestic tourism grew by 11%, exceeding 50,000 local travelers.
Demand among Moldovan citizens for tours abroad fell by 3% (to 142,000 people), but it still is nearly three times higher than the number of people wishing to visit local attractions.
The top destinations for international travel were Turkey (36%), Egypt (19.8%), and Bulgaria (13.7%).
The NBS also emphasizes that the slight decline in leisure travel was more than offset by Moldovans’ business trips abroad, which increased by 36.1%. The specific categories of business travel are not specified, but the statistics note a decline in Moldovans’ interest in seeking medical treatment abroad: trips for this purpose fell by 14.2%. Business trips by civil servants and corporate travel remain steady.
Tour Operators and Insurers Are Not Losing Out
According to the National Bank of Moldova (NBS), the country’s travel agencies’ revenue grew by 9% in the first half of the year, totaling 1.9 billion lei. The largest share of revenue came from outbound tourism—1,756.0 million lei (+8.9%)— followed by domestic tourism—97.2 million lei (+11.3%)—and inbound tourism—43.9 million lei (+25.4%).
The NBS does not publish data on the net profits of tourism companies in its operational reports, but companies use this amount to pay for airline tickets, hotels, transportation, and other services to foreign and local partners. And, judging by comments on social media, profit margins are falling due to higher costs for tours and logistics this year.
The average net profit margin for large tour operators is typically only 3–7% of total revenue (the rest goes toward covering the cost of the tour packages themselves and operating expenses).
Insurers also profit from tourists. Medical insurance for citizens traveling abroad (travel insurance) is one of the most widely purchased voluntary products in Moldova. More than 400,000 such policies are issued in the country each year, a figure directly linked to the growth in tourist traffic.
The travel insurance segment generates approximately 75–80 million lei annually for companies and is considered the most profitable. Insurers pay out more than 29 million lei per year for insured events abroad, but this represents only about 36–40% of the funds raised.
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