Tourism in Turkey

Tourism income losses at the Mediterranean resort of Antalya will be more than $5 billion, mainly due to a sharp decline in the number of Russian tourists visiting the city, according to sector representatives. 

In a tough year for tourism in Turkey, Germans have topped the list of tourists visiting the country in the first eight months of 2015, according to figures from the Culture and Tourism Ministry.

About 3.75 million German tourists visited Turkey during the period, followed by Russian tourists at 2.78 million, and British tourists at 1.8 million.

Fourteen countries have issued security warnings on Monday 12, October to their citizens following the deadly bombing attacks occurred last weekend at Ankara, Turkey concerning the increased risk of terrorism in the country.

British Consul-General to Turkey in Istanbul Leigh Turner said the number of British companies investing in Turkey would rise if further stability and democracy in the country were granted, in a tourism and business seminar held in western Bursa province on Sept. 17. 

Turkey?s tourism numbers and income have been declining this year amid security concerns and economic woes in Russia, but the losses may be much higher in 2016 unless serious measures are taken, especially in a bid to preserve the country?s perception abroad. 

Cruise tourist traffic to Turkey increased by 20 percent in the first half of the year from the same period in 2014, according to data compiled from the database of the Touristic Hoteliers' Association of the Mediterranean (AKTOB). 

The number of foreign visitors to Turkey fell in the first half of the year while the outlook for the rest of 2015 looked gloomy as heightened security risks weigh on tourists' appetite for visiting the country.

Foreign arrivals fell 2.25 percent to 14.89 million people in the first six months, data from the Tourism Ministry showed on July 29. 

Tourism, the most important sector that earns foreign currency for Turkey, is having an unpleasant season. This has both internal and external reasons. Some are optimistic; some are pessimistic. The sector has named this "the year of crisis." 

Tourism representatives have supported the idea to give Russian tourists the chance to enter Turkey with only their identity cards, rather than their passports.

Due to the economic crisis in Russia, there has recently been a decrease in the number of Russian tourists flowing into Turkey, as well as to some other countries.

The number of Russian tourists visiting Turkey's Mediterranean province of Antalya decreased by 41 percent in the first two months of the year, much higher than the overall decrease in visitors to the province of 2.9 percent, according to data from the Association of Mediterranean Tourism and Hoteliers of Turkey (AKTOB).