According to the Istanbul Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism, Istanbul welcomed 8,514,806 foreign tourists in the first seven months of 2022. This figure increased by 15% in the same period of this year, reaching 9,776,635.
In July last year, the city hosted 1,759,506 foreign visitors. This number grew by about 6% this July, with the city welcoming 1,873,097 tourists. The data shows that, after this July, the highest number of tourists to Istanbul came in the same month of 2022.
In July alone, 1,823,416 individuals arrived in Istanbul by air, while 49,681 traveled via sea. Compared to the same period last year, there was a 5% increase in air travelers and a whopping 72% increase in those arriving by sea.
Breaking down the July air travel figures, 1,642 used Atatürk Airport, 517,429 came through Sabiha Gökçen Airport, and 1,304,345 traveled via Istanbul Airport. Maritime arrivals were distributed across several ports with the most notable being Karaköy Port with 42,520 foreign visitors.
Of the air travelers, 71.53% utilized Istanbul Airport, while 28.38% chose Sabiha Gökçen Airport.
For July, Russians topped the list with 185,636 tourists visiting Istanbul. They were followed by Germany with 135,568 tourists, Saudi Arabia with 135,096, the USA with 105,041, and Iran with 97,352. The percentage breakdown of July’s visitors saw 9.91% from Russia, 7.24% from Germany, and 7.21% from Saudi Arabia, among others. Tourists visited from 196 countries, including single visitors from places like Solomon Islands, North Korea, and Papua New Guinea.
Notably, Istanbul hosted about one-third of the total 26,766,240 tourists who visited Turkey in the first seven months of the year.
Historical data shows a dynamic shift in tourism trends. In July 2019, 1,666,319 tourists visited the city, plunging to 301,930 in 2020, and seeing a recovery with 1,130,999 tourists in July 2021.
