Influx in Istanbul tourism helps to wash away COVID

Venues across Istanbul have continued to be swarming with holidaymakers from abroad, with the influx of visitors helping to wash away any traces from the COVID-19 pandemic effect.

This has been driven by arrivals flooding in from Russia, with the number of foreigners flocking to the city of Istanbul in October alone, jumping 37% to 1.58 million year-on-year. This is according to the provincial culture and tourism directorate data.

Increases, even compared to before the pandemic

The data showed that visitor numbers to the city had increased compared to the same periods of October even years prior. In 2018 and 2019, the figures of visitors stood at 1.23 and 1.35 million, respectively.

The numbers were slashed due to the pandemic, with only 533,405 visitors in 2020, followed by a rebound of approximately 1.15 million tourists in October 2021. This is according to official data.

Foreign arrivals to Istanbul

The directorate said that foreign arrivals within the first 10 months of 2022 have jumped up. These arrivals were backed by Russian visitors mainly, who have been hit by flight restrictions applied by Western countries.

Russians are not the only ones flocking to Turkey and aiding in the rebound, there has been a massive leap in the demand for holidaymakers from Europe, led by Germany and the United Kingdom.

Data from October

In October alone, according to the data, around 185,339 Russian nationals arrived in Istanbul, the Turkish capital. This was followed by 116,219 arrivals from Germany, 94,579 tourists from Iran, and additional 72,428 from United States, a further 62,510 people arriving from Britain.

These figures show that Russians made up 11.7% of all visitors to the city in October. This was followed by 7.33% of Germans, 5.97% of Iranians, 4.57% of Americans and 3.94% of British.

194 different countries

Further statistics revealed that in October alone, Istanbul hosted 194 different countries. There was one person from each of the Tonga and the Solomon Islands, and two people from Nauru and Macao.