Ankara, February 10, 2026 – The Europe Today: Türkiye welcomed 64 million tourists and generated $65.2 billion in tourism revenue in 2025, marking an increase in both arrivals and earnings compared to the previous year, despite ongoing geopolitical challenges in the region, the head of a Turkish tourism non-profit said on Monday.
Erkan Yagci, chairman of Turofed, said Türkiye had consolidated its position as “a truly powerful tourism country in the world,” noting that tourist numbers rose by 3 percent while tourism revenues surged by 7 percent compared to 2024.
“2025 was a year when we achieved the highest tourism figures,” Yagci said, adding that Türkiye became the world’s fourth-most-visited country, according to the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO).
Acknowledging regional geopolitical challenges, Yagci expressed optimism for the year ahead. “We kicked off 2026 with hope, and we believe we will close this year with figures slightly above last year’s,” he said. “The Turkish tourism sector is a crisis-resistant industry, and as long as we continue our efforts, we will once again achieve record revenues and tourist numbers.”
He said Türkiye’s long-term strategy focuses on spreading tourism across all 12 months and throughout the country’s regions to reduce seasonal concentration. Initiatives in sports tourism, conference tourism and cultural events are being expanded to attract visitors during winter and off-peak seasons.
Highlighting the role of conference tourism, Yagci noted that it is particularly active during winter and spring, while the resort city of Antalya in southwestern Türkiye hosts numerous national and international events annually.
He said Antalya will host several major global events in 2026, including the Antalya Diplomacy Forum from April 17–19, the 77th International Astronautical Congress from Oct. 5–9, and the United Nations climate change conference COP31 from Nov. 9–20.
“It is significant that such prestigious international events will be held in the Turkish tourism capital,” Yagci said, adding that Antalya ranks among the world’s top 10 cities in terms of tourist capacity.
He concluded that continued diversification and investment would help Türkiye sustain growth, strengthen resilience and further enhance its standing as a leading global tourism destination.
