Foreign arrivals in Türkiye jumped more than 2% in January, official data showed Friday, maintaining the trend after the best year ever for the industry, a critical revenue source for the country.
According to the Culture and Tourism Ministry data, the number of tourists topped 2 million last month, led by arrivals from Russia.
Some 230,579 Russians were followed by 211,801 Iranians, 162,414 Bulgarians and 142,825 Germans, the data showed.
Türkiye welcomed a record of around 49.2 million tourists in 2023, up 10.4% from 44.6 million foreigners who arrived in 2022, spearheaded by arrivals from Russia and Europe.
Trips from Russia stem mostly from flight restrictions imposed by Western nations over Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.
Tourism income climbed to an all-time high of $54.32 billion, compared to $46.48 billion in 2022.
The government sees arrivals reaching 60 million before hitting 90 million in 2028. For the income, it envisages it to rise to $60 billion this year and $100 billion five years from now.
The foreign exchange it brings in makes tourism income vital to Türkiye's economy, as the government focuses on flipping the current account deficits to a surplus, prioritizing exports, production and investments while curbing rising inflation.
