Overnight stay figures for German tourists reach five-year high

German visitors arriving in Turkey reached an average of 12.5 overnight stays last year, according to the Turkish Travel Agencies Association's (TÜRSAB) German Tourism Market Report.

The figure has crossed the previous record of 10.2 set back in 2015. Germany, one of Turkey's largest tourism markets, recorded a significant increase last year.

According to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, the number of German visitors arriving in 2018 rose to 4.5 million, recording a 25.9 percent increase compared to the previous year.

The Ministry's border-crossing statistics indicate that the number of visitors coming from Germany to Turkey this January surged by 17.55 percent to 102,120 compared to the same month of the previous year.

German citizens mostly traveling with package tours prefer the Mediterranean, Marmara, Aegean and Central Anatolia regions, including provinces in Antalya, Istanbul, Izmir and Muğla. According to the Antalya Airport authorities, the number of German passengers coming to Antalya in 2018 climbed 38 percent compared to the previous year, standing at 2.3 million.

Meanwhile, the average spending of German visitors in Turkey reached $832 as of 2018, following an upward trend in the post-2015 period.

The Germans also lead the way in demand for foreign residential sales in Turkey, which stands out as one of their indispensable holiday destinations.

German citizens, who mostly prefer Antalya in residential sales, purchased 1,866 houses in 2018, showing a 141.7 percent increase in demand compared to the previous year. According to January 2019 figures, the number of houses purchased by German citizens has so far reached 119 this year.