2021 saw revenues double as foreign tourism reignited

According to official data recently released, last year saw revenues double as foreign visitors returned to Turkey once more. The recovery is a welcome sign since the measures put in place in 2020 due to the Coronavirus Pandemic.

Turkish revenue up by 103%

Data from TurkStat (the Turkish Statistical Institute) shows that revenue in 2021 hit almost 25 billion USD, which was still a far cry from 34.5 billion USD reached in 2019, prior to the arrival of the pandemic. Figures in 2019 are the highest Turkey have ever recorded. It was the fourth quarter of the year 2021 that produced the best result with tourist income rising by 95% which was only 3% lower than the same time in 2019. The year 2022 is looking even better for Turkey.

Visitor numbers in Turkey

The Culture and Tourism Ministry revealed that numbers visiting Turkey, including Turkish nationals living abroad, rose to 30 million in 2021 which was an increase of over 88% from the previous year with the foreign arrivals making up 24.7 million, which was a jump of a massive 94%.

Where did the visitors come from?

Data revealed that nearly 4.7 million tourists came from Russia during the period January through to December, which is an increase of over 120.5% year on year. Russian visitors were followed by just over 3 million German visitors, which an increase of 175.7% and over 2 million tourists from Ukraine, which was up 106.5% compared to the year before. The ministry also confirmed that foreign arrivals monthly were up by over 170.6% year-on-year in December to 1.89 million in total.

Edirne Province

The Edirne province in the north western area of Turkey, welcomed 265,929 Bulgarians in December 2021, which was an increase of over 160%. The Bulgarians were followed by 188,146 visitors from Germany, an increase of 299% and 151,687 Iranian tourists, which marked more than an enormous 350% increase from the year before.