Muğla was the only major tourism destination in Türkiye to increase its real hotel revenue in the first half of 2026, according to an analysis by Turizm Databank.
Hotel accommodation income across the country rose 10.7% in dollar terms to $6.4bn in the first 6 months of the year, but fell 0.3% in real terms after inflation, the report said. Istanbul kept the top spot with $2.5bn in accommodation revenue, while Antalya, Aydın and Nevşehir all posted real declines.
The findings underline how headline growth in tourism earnings does not always translate into stronger purchasing-power gains for the sector.
Turizm Databank said Muğla stood out among Türkiye’s major destinations, with accommodation revenue up 48.9% in dollar terms and 34.1% in real terms. That made it the only large tourism province to record a real increase during the period.
Istanbul, which remained the country’s biggest hotel revenue market, saw real growth of just 0.7%. Antalya, Türkiye’s other major beach destination, generated $1.5bn in hotel revenue but recorded an 11% fall in real terms.
Other destinations also struggled to keep pace with inflation. Real revenue fell 7.6% in Aydın and 4.8% in Nevşehir, according to the analysis.
Outside the largest tourism centres, several provinces reported stronger performance. Afyon led the gains with a 15.8% rise in real hotel revenue, followed by Konya at 13.3%, Yalova at 11.2%, Mardin at 11%, Balıkesir at 10.1% and İzmir at 9.7%.
The report comes as Türkiye’s tourism sector continues to depend heavily on a small number of high-volume destinations, especially Istanbul, Antalya and Muğla. While dollar-based revenue improved in the first half of the year, the inflation-adjusted data showed that most destinations still faced pressure on real earnings.
Muğla’s outperformance is likely to draw attention from hotel operators and tourism officials because it suggests the province attracted stronger demand, better pricing or both. The analysis did not give a reason for the shift, but it pointed to a clear gap between Muğla and the rest of the country’s leading destinations.
