Cruise ships bring 1.9 million travelers in 11 months

ISTANBUL

Some 1.85 million cruise passengers arrived at Turkish ports in the first 11 months of 2024, up from 1.52 million during the same period last year.

According to data from the Transport Ministry, 1,167 cruise ships visited the country’s ports in January-November.

September has been the busiest month so far, with 195 cruise ships docking at Turkish ports, compared to just five ships in February.

The port in the Aegean district of Kuşadası was the most visited destination, according to the numbers from the ministry. The Turkish holiday hotspot welcomed 520 cruise ships with 818,000 passengers on board in the first 11 months of 2024.

Istanbul ranked second at 195 ships and 427,000 passengers, followed by the port of Bodrum, on the Aegean coast, at 97 ships and 118,000 travelers.

The port of Çeşme drew 73 cruise ships with 54,000 passengers in the January-November period.

In November, fewer cruise ships (55) visited the country’s ports compared with November last year (95) and the number of passengers declined from 124,000 to a little more than 84,000, the ministry data showed.

Last year, 1,192 cruise ships visited Türkiye, bringing 1.54 million passengers, up from 993 cruise ships and 1.01 million passengers in 2022.