Azerbaijan’s State Statistics Committee reports that of 78,655 nights foreign visitors spent in Sheki in January-September 2026, just 5,192 were logged at hotel-type facilities. Most nights were spent in homes owned by the tourists or their families, or with relatives and friends.
According to the State Statistics Committee of the Republic of Azerbaijan, the bulk of foreign tourist overnight stays in the Sheki district occurred outside hotels. Official figures show 4,165 nights were spent in rented apartments and 30,661 nights at the homes of relatives or acquaintances. A further 38,637 nights were recorded in property owned by the tourists themselves or their family members.
As a result, 88.1% of foreign tourist nights were spent in private property or with relatives, and 5.3% in rented apartments. Hotel and hotel-type facilities accounted for just 6.6% of overnight stays.
Sheki lags behind other regions
Nationwide, hotels account for 32.2% of foreign tourist overnight stays. By comparison, the figure stands at 21.9% in the Gabala district, 32.8% in the Gusar district and 54.1% in the city of Naftalan. Against this backdrop, Sheki’s hotel sector performance falls well short of both the national average and other tourism centers.
Tourism revenue also declined
According to data released by the State Tourism Agency in August, Sheki district earned 12 million 668,100 manats from tourism in the first quarter of this year, down from 19 million 250,700 manats in the same period last year. This represents an annual decline of 6 million 582,600 manats, or 34.2%.
The Agency’s Protected Areas Management Center reported that in the first nine months of this year, 128,487 people bought tickets to museums and cultural sites at Sheki’s Yukhari Bash State Historical-Architectural Reserve. Of these visitors, 56,178 were foreign guests and 72,309 were local residents.
