The number of tourists pouring in from Russia and European markets is rising at a faster-than-expected pace, prompting Türkiye’s seasonal expectations to be revised upward, according to industry officials.
Encouraged by flows in the first half of the year and soaring earnings, Türkiye last month lifted its targets to $37 billion in tourism revenues and 47 million tourists for this year, up from earlier forecasts of $35 billion and 45 million.
Global headwinds and uncertainties coupled with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine were expected to impact the arrivals from Türkiye’s top tourist sources, just as the sector recovered from the coronavirus pandemic.
Yet, Mehmet Işler, the deputy chair of the Türkiye Hoteliers Federation (TÜROFED) highlighted a continuous increase in arrivals from Russia, particularly in the Mediterranean resort of Antalya.
“This is a pleasing development for tourism. Our expectations when it comes to the Russian market have gone even higher than at the beginning of the season,” Işler said.
“We did not expect so many Russian tourists,” said Kuşadası Tourism and Promotion Association Chair Bülent Ilbahar.
Tourist flows have also been driven by arrivals from Europe, spearheaded by the United Kingdom and Germany, which Işler says also maintain an upward trend.
“We had predicted around 2.5 million tourists from the U.K.; this figure is heading towards 3.5 million. Arrivals from the European market also continue to rise,” said Işler.
The number of foreign tourists hit 16.37 million in the first half of the year, up 186% year-over-year, according to the Culture and Tourism Ministry data.
