Türkiye's economic and cultural hub and one of the most prominent tourist locations globally, Istanbul has attracted nearly 2.5 million foreign visitors in the first two months of the year, according to data shared by the Culture and Tourism Ministry on Tuesday.
The city straddling two continents drew some 2.45 million visitors, according to the statement, resulting in an 8.08% increase when compared to the same period a year earlier.
Accordingly, Istanbul stood out at the forefront, hosting over half of the 4.34 million visitors arriving in the country in the stated period, the Culture and Tourism Ministry's data showed.
Moreover, based on the data for February, it was stated that the number of foreign visitors to the city surged 19.14% year-over-year to 1.29 million.
Leading the list of arrivals last month were visitors from Russia with 138,957 followed by tourists from Germany (95,465) and those arriving from Iran (75,312). Iran was followed by the United Kingdom (56,430), France (48,902), Saudi Arabia (43,415) and the United States (41,472).
Most of the arrivals to the city in February were via Istanbul Airport, which accounted for 70.27% of the total visits, according to the data. The remainder of 29.64% visits via air was accomplished via entries at Sabiha Gökçen International Airport, according to the ministry.
Moreover, the data showed that the number of visitors arriving in Istanbul via air rose by 19.17% to 1.28 million when compared to the same month in 2023.
The number of foreigners coming to Istanbul by sea last month reached 4,232 people, an increase of 11.19% compared to the same month of the previous year.
The overall number of foreign tourists arriving in Türkiye jumped almost 23% year-over-year in February, according to official data released last week.
