Türkiye: tourism revenue hits record USD 51.3 billion in nine months

Türkiye earned USD 51.3 billion from tourism between January and September 2026, its highest total ever for the first nine months of a year. The Türkiye Tourism Promotion and Development Agency (TGA) gave the figure in a statement dated October 30.

That amount is 2.4% higher than a year earlier. The third quarter alone also set a record, with tourism revenue up 5% to USD 25.5 billion, according to results presented by Minister of Culture and Tourism Mehmet Nuri Ersoy at a press conference in İstanbul.

Ersoy described a difficult year for international travel. He said regional conflicts, airspace restrictions and higher energy and airfare costs had weighed on travellers’ decisions, airline capacity and tour operators’ programmes, and called Türkiye “an island of stability” in that context.

“Achieving the highest third-quarter and nine-month revenues in our history in such a year shows the value of this approach.”

The minister linked the result to steps taken since 2018, including the creation of the TGA to run continuous, systematic promotion, alongside wider source markets and a more diverse tourism offer. He said Türkiye would protect its position in its main markets while stepping up efforts in the Americas, Canada, East Asia, Africa and Oceania.

Over the nine months, the average stay lengthened by 0.3% to 10.34 nights, while average spending per night climbed 4.6% to USD 107.7.

The country received 49.1 million visitors in the period. The Russian Federation remained the largest source market with 5.70 million visitors, ahead of Germany with 5.17 million and the United Kingdom with 3.20 million.