Turkey’s tourism income surges $23.4 billion

ANKARA - Anatolia News Agency

AA Photo

Turkey has boosted it tourism revenues to $23.4 billion in 2012, recording a slight 1.8 percent increase compared to the same period last year, Turkish Statistical Institution data suggests.Turkey has become a favorite destination as the number of tourists visiting the country, particularly from Arab regions, dramatically increased in recent years.

Revenues have surged due to a sharp increase in tourists as well as their individual average expenditure, which was $795 per person. Turkey obtained 77.9 percent of tourism income from foreign visitors and 22.1 percent from Turkish citizens residing abroad.Despite the figures, the sector has been struggling as crisis-hit rivals Greece and Egypt maintain reduced hotel prices from the previous year, forcing Turks to reciprocate in order to remain competitive.

The largest number of tourists visited Turkey from Germany, Russia and Britain, while the number of tourists from Iran and Syria decreased the most, according to tourism data provided by the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism.