The number of tourists arriving from Saudi Arabia to Türkiye rocketed this year, according to official data, driven mainly by the momentum of joint efforts of the two countries to mend ties following years of tension.
Some 460,450 Saudis have arrived in Türkiye throughout the 11 months this year, the Culture and Tourism Ministry data showed, a fivefold increase versus a year ago.
According to the data arrivals in November alone reached as much as 65,339, up from just 932 in the same month a year ago.
The increase came as Türkiye and Saudi Arabia this year moved to mend ties following years of tension, which escalated significantly after the 2018 murder of dissident Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Saudi Arabia’s Istanbul Consulate.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan visited Saudi Arabia in April, the first high-level visit in years. His trip was followed by Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman’s (MBS) trip to Türkiye in June.
The two leaders also met recently on the sidelines of the G-20 summit in Bali, Indonesia.
Top officials' reciprocal trips have also maintained the momentum of talks.
Treasury and Finance Minister Nureddin Nebati paid a visit to Riyadh in October, while Saudi Investment Minister Khalid Al Falih attended a central business forum in Istanbul last week.
Arrivals of Saudis notably surged after MBS’s trip, increasing to 13,346 in June before rocketing to 110,991 in July and 140,203 in August.
The figure dropped to 68,107 in September but remained much higher compared to as few as 698 tourists that came in the same month a year ago.
The data showed that arrivals reached more than 56,000 in October, up from 874 in the same month of 2021.
