Turkey witnesses surge in foreign arrivals by 300% in May

Ankara: Turkey has received around 3.82 million foreign arrivals in May, surged by 308 per cent year-on-year, the country’s Culture and Tourism Ministry said.

During the first five months of 2022, Turkey hosted a total of 12.7 million foreign arrivals, up by 207 per cent compared to the same period last year, Xinhua news agency quoted the Ministry as saying.

Most foreign arrivals are registered in Istanbul, Antalya, Edirne, Mugla and Artvin.

Meanwhile, German tourists to Turkey accounted for the most in the first five months of the year, which increased by 367 per cent, followed by arrivals from Bulgaria (334 per cent) and Russia (49 per cent).

The country’s crucial tourism industry has been recovering since the country eased health measures in 2021, but the number of foreign arrivals still falls behind May 2019 by 4.9 per cent, which was before the pandemic, said the Ministry.

Turkey’s tourism sector has also been negatively affected by the Ukraine war, since Russian and Ukrainian tourists were the main sources of income, particularly for resorts along the Mediterranean coast.