Türkiye posts record tourism revenues in 2025

2025 was a good year for Türkiye’s tourism industry. The country’s Minister of Culture and Tourism, Mehmet Nuri Ersoy revealed at an event in Istanbul that  Türkiye had welcomed 64 million visitors in 2025, while it’s tourism revenues topped USD $65.2B.

Commenting on the results, Tourism Minister Ersoy said: “We are aiming for $68 billion dollars in 2026,”and he went on to highlight how Turkish tourism has now become a force not only on a regional but also a global scale, according to data from the United Nations World Tourism Organization.

The Minister also reminded those attending the Istanbul event that in 2017, Türkiye ranked eighth among countries hosting the most tourists in the world, but by 2024 it had risen to fourth place.

He also pointed out that in terms of tourism revenue, Türkiye ranked 15th in 2017 but had climbed to seventh by 2024, and he announced a target of USD $68 billion for 2026.

Türkiye has now gained a strong reflex and serious experience in managing crises, Minister Ersoy said, noting that Türkiye’s tourism sector has moved beyond just sea, sand, and sun tourism; there is a growing diversity in many areas such as: culture and faith , nature and eco-tourism, archaeology, health and thermal, gastronomy, congress and fair, cruise, and winter tourism.

Minister Ersoy also said that the “Heritage for the Future” vision and Night Museum projects are among the few achievements in the world that only a limited number of countries can accomplish, and that Türkiye has become one of the most successful examples in this field. Highlighting that the “miniseries” model used in the promotional strategy has also achieved great success on a global scale, Ersoy noted that a single episode of the series “An Istanbul Story” reached 32 million views, and even the least viewed content received 10 million views.

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Türkiye’s Minister of Culture and Tourism, Mehmet Nuri Ersoy, announces the country’s 2025 tourism results at an event in Istanbul.