Turkey’s tourism revenue hits record $54.3bn in 2023

Unsplash.com/Mar Cerdeira

Turkey’s tourism revenues hit a record high of $54.32 billion in 2023, rising 17 percent from $46.48 billion in 2022, Turkish Statistical Institute data showed.

Individual travellers contributed $41.61 billion to the total tourism income, while package tours added $13.25 billion.

The official data showed that in the fourth quarter of last year tourism revenues climbed 6.8 percent to $12.27 billion. 

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The majority of the tourists were Turkish expats, reaching 1.69 million in the quarter ending December 31, 2023.

The average expenditure per night of all tourists stood at $93, while the average expenditure per night of Turkish expats was $64.

Sports, education and culture expenditure rose 49.4 percent year on year in the fourth quarter. Accommodation expenditure increased 14.3 percent, while food and beverage expenses increased by 12.9 percent year on year, the data showed. 

The holiday destination of Antalya saw hotel rates in 2023 rise 19.35 percent year on year.

The average daily rate (ADR) for hotels in Antalya reached €172.1 ($186.21), Hürriyet Daily News reported, citing data from the Hotel Association of Türkiye (TÜROB).

The revenue per available room (RevPAR) rose 8 percent year on year to €96.8.

The increase in daily rates saw occupancy at Antalya hotels fall to 56.2 percent in 2023, from 62.2 percent in the previous year.

Antalya last year attracted 15.7 million foreign tourists. A total of 3.46 million Russians visited, up 14 percent from 2022.

Germans constituted the second-largest group of foreign holidaymakers at 3.36 million, a 19 percent growth year on year.

British tourists visiting Antalya also grew by 15 percent, reaching 1.3 million.

The number of Turkish citizens going abroad increased by 52.3 percent year on year to 11.67 million. The average expenditure was $639 per capita.