According to data released by the Istanbul Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism, the number of visitors to the city in July reached a new record.
In July 2023, Istanbul welcomed 1,873,000 visitors, marking a 6% increase compared to the same period in 2022, as reported by the Istanbul Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism. With this figure, Istanbul achieved the highest monthly foreign tourist count in a decade.
For the first seven months of 2023, Istanbul saw a 15% increase in visitors, reaching a total of 9,776,000.
The data reveals that the highest number of tourists arrived in Istanbul after July of this year compared to the same month in 2022.
Of the visitors in July, 1,823,000 arrived by air while 49,000 arrived by sea.
Russians Maintain the Lead in July
Russia, with 185,000 tourists in July, continued to hold the top position as the country sending the most tourists to Istanbul. Russia was followed by Germany with 135,000, Saudi Arabia with 135,000, the United States with 105,000, Iran with 97,000, France with 69,000, the United Kingdom with 69,000, Iraq with 51,000, Kuwait with 45,000, Israel with 45,000, and the Netherlands with 44,000.
In terms of nationalities, 9.91% of visitors to Istanbul in July were from Russia, 7.24% from Germany, 7.21% from Saudi Arabia, 5.61% from the United States, 5.20% from Iran, 3.70% from France, 3.68% from the United Kingdom, and 2.74% from Iraq.
Throughout July, visitors from 196 countries arrived in the city, with one each from the Solomon Islands, North Korea, and Papua New Guinea, and two from Laos and East Timor.
Nearly 1 in 3 Tourists in Turkey Visit Istanbul
Out of the total 26,766,000 visitors to Turkey in the first seven months of the year, approximately 1/3 visited Istanbul.
It's worth noting that in July 2019, 1,666,000 visitors came to Istanbul, while in July 2020, the number dropped to 301,000. In July 2021, Istanbul welcomed 1,130,000 visitors.