The number of those trips to and from Bulgaria is steadily declining since November 2008. Photo by Sofia Photo Agency
The number of trips of Bulgarians abroad continues to decrease, according to data from the National Statistics Institute (NSI).
During the month of May, 2009 Bulgarians made 493 300 trips abroad, which is 6,4% less than those in May of 2008.
The most significant decrease is registered for trips to Malta (84%), followed by Japan, Finland, the US, the Czech Republic and others.
Compared to May 2008 trips to Greece, Romania and Turkey, however, register an increase of 22%, 12% and 5,3% respectively. An 80% increase of the trips to Greece on annual basis was registered in April.
Nearly half of the Bulgarian trips abroad in May were business ones, 27% traveled on vacation while 21% went abroad for private visits.