LJUBLJANA, Jan. 25 -- Chinese tourist arrivals in Slovenia last year almost tripled the 2022 figure, according to data published by the country's statistical office on Thursday.

The data showed that 34,767 Chinese tourists visited Slovenia in 2023, 2.9 times as many as in 2022. Most of them arrived in September and October.

In 2023, the total number of foreign tourists to Slovenia increased by 18.4 percent year-on-year to 4.7 million. Most of them were from Germany, Italy, Austria and Croatia.

The number of domestic tourists, however, fell by 20.6 percent. In 2021 and 2022, domestic tourism was boosted by tourist vouchers handed out to citizens, an effort to cushion the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Still, the overall number of tourists rose by 5.5 percent in 2023, "the most successful year" for tourism, the statistical office said in a report on Thursday.

The capital city Ljubljana alone recorded a 20.7-percent surge in tourist arrivals last year, it said.

The number of overnight stays increased by 2 percent from 2019, the previous best record for tourism in Slovenia.