Türkiye’s Mediterranean tourism hub of Antalya has become the first from the country to be included in Euromonitor International’s list of the world’s top 10 tourism destinations, ranking fifth in the 2025 edition, according to the London-based market research company.
Euromonitor annually publishes two separate rankings: The world’s most visited cities and the world’s best tourism destinations.
While Türkiye has drawn attention by placing two cities, both Istanbul and Antalya, on the most-visited list, tourism experts say the destination ranking carries greater long-term significance.
Recep Yavuz, head of the tourism working group at the Antalya City Council, said the destination index reflects a broader and more strategic evaluation of tourism performance.
He noted that Euromonitor assesses more than 50 indicators across six core categories, including tourism infrastructure, economic impact, employment potential, policy consistency, health and safety and sustainability. The study covers data from around 100 destinations worldwide.
“The focus is no longer just on increasing visitor numbers,” Yavuz said. “The goal is to ensure that tourism grows in a balanced way, without damaging natural resources or undermining the quality of life for local residents.”
According to Yavuz, Antalya had never appeared on this list in previous years, partly because Türkiye’s tourism strategy traditionally emphasized visitor volume rather than destination quality.
He said the growing emphasis on sustainability and balanced development has now reshaped how destinations are evaluated.
In the 2025 ranking, the top 10 tourism destinations are listed as Orlando, New York, Mecca, Paris, Antalya, Medina, Los Angeles, Dubai, Cancun and Kyoto.
Yavuz said Antalya’s placement was driven by factors such as product diversity, geographic advantages, a modern airport, resort-focused accommodation, family-friendly services, technological capacity and harmony with nature.
Visitor feedback is also believed to play a role in the evaluation.
Separately, Euromonitor’s most-visited cities ranking shows Bangkok leading with 30 million visitors, followed by Hong Kong, London, Macau, Istanbul, Dubai, Mecca, Antalya, Paris and Kuala Lumpur.
Antalya stands out as the only resort-based on the list, with the remaining cities categorized primarily as urban tourism hubs.
Yavuz said the challenge ahead is to preserve and strengthen Antalya’s position by focusing on value-oriented tourism, year-round travel through sports, congress and cultural tourism and sustainability-driven policies.
