ANKARA
Foreign tourist arrivals in Türkiye increased by 7.03 percent year-on-year in January-October to 47.3 million, according to data from the Culture and Tourism Ministry on Nov. 22.
Including Turks residing abroad, 54.6 million visitors came to Türkiye in the first 10 months of 2024.
In October alone, the country hosted 5.45 million international holidaymakers, marking a 9.25 percent increase from a year ago.
Russians constituted the largest group of foreign visitors, followed by Germans and Britons, according to the ministry data.
From January to October, the number of Russians vacationing in Türkiye rose by 7.1 percent from the same period of last year to 6.25 million, accounting for 13.2 percent of all foreign tourist arrivals.
During this period, more than 6 million German nationals visited the country, up 6.4 percent year-on-year.
British tourists surged 17 percent annually to 4.2 million, according to the latest data.
In the first 10 months of the year, Türkiye also welcomed 2.76 million Iranian and 2.45 million Bulgarian visitors.
The number of Ukrainian tourists visiting Türkiye in January-October exhibited an annual increase of 13.3 percent to 848,342.
Istanbul remained the top destination for foreign visitors.
The megacity welcomed 15.8 million tourists in the first 10 months, corresponding to a 33 percent share in total arrivals.
The Mediterranean province of Antalya received 15.2 million foreign tourists.
More than 4 million foreigners visited the northwestern province of Edirne. People from the neighboring countries, mostly from Bulgaria, travel to Edirne for shopping purposes.
Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy recently said that the end-of-year target for visitors was revised to 61 million from a previous 60 million.
Türkiye’s tourism revenue increased by 6.6 percent to $46.9 billion in the first nine months of 2024 from a year ago.
The government initially aimed at $60 billion in tourism revenues for 2024.
Istanbul will host a major tourism event on Nov. 26-27, the Turkish Tourism Investors Association (TTYD) announced this week.
The Tourism Investment Forum (TIF) 2024 will bring together international investors, financial firms, hotel brands, innovators and real estate developers, among others, to explore investment opportunities in Türkiye, according to the association.
TIF is expected to attract over 1,000 participants representing nearly $10 trillion in the global tourism ecosystem.
Key discussions will focus on strategies shaping the future of travel and tourism investments, financing, emerging trends, luxury and lifestyle brands, cultural and artistic initiatives, wellness and medical tourism.
