Turkey targets $55 billion tourism revenues next year

ISTANBUL

Turkey aims to generate $55 billion in tourism revenues and host 63 million tourists in 2023, according to projections that Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy presented at a recent meeting while he also voiced confidence that the targets set for 2022 could also be met despite the geopolitical tensions.

According to the targets and projections for 2022 and the years to come Ersoy presented at a meeting with senior officials from the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) at its headquarters, per capita spending by foreign tourists is forecast to be $870 and $1,200 in 2028.

The country’s revenues from tourism activity is expected to rise to $120 billion and foreign tourist arrivals are projected to climb to 100 million in 2028.

At the meeting, the minister also voiced optimism that Turkey could meet the targets of $35 billion in tourism revenues and attracting 42 million international holidaymakers in 2022 despite potential challenges from the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

“Presently, 125 promotion campaigns are ongoing to lure tourists from different countries. Our country-specific works are done, and all proper actions have been taken. I do not think the Ukraine-Russian tension will adversely affect Turkey,” Ersoy told the AKP officials.

The V-shaped recovery the tourism industry witnessed last year may continue in 2022, he said, noting there were no problems regarding early reservations.

In 2021, Turkey welcomed 24.7 million foreign tourists up from the previous year’s 12.7 million people, while the country’s tourism revenues leaped 103 percent from 2020 to stand at $24.5 billion.

At the meeting, Ersoy also cited a survey which showed that 40 percent of tourists prefer resorts on the Mediterranean coast while another 40 percent favor the Marmara region. Some 10 percent of the surveyed said their favorite destination is the Aegean region.