Türkiye’s tourism revenue and foreign tourist arrivals both rose in the first quarter of 2026 compared with the same period last year, according to official data released on April 30.
Tourism revenue reached $9.9 billion, while the country welcomed nearly 7 million foreign visitors between January and March.
Tourism income grew by 4.2 percent year-on-year, the first quarter of 2026, the Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK) announced on April 30.
Tourism income from visitors amounted to $9.69 billion, while transfer passengers contributed $202 million. Of the income from visitors, 25.6 percent came from Turkish citizens residing abroad.
Individual expenditures accounted for $8.5 billion of total visitor income. Package tour expenditures made up $1.2 billion.
Food and beverage spending represented 27 percent of total tourism income. International transportation accounted for 15.8 percent, and accommodation made up 13 percent. Compared with the same quarter last year, accommodation expenditures rose by 21.2 percent. Health expenditures increased by 18.4 percent, and food and beverage spending grew by 13.7 percent.
Data also showed that tourism expenditure by Turkish citizens traveling abroad fell by 9.1 percent compared with the same quarter of the previous year, declining to $2.2 billion. Of this, $1.7 billion was individual spending, while $494 million came from package tours.
The number of Turkish citizens traveling abroad increased by 13.1 percent compared with the same quarter last year, reaching 2.94 million. Average expenditure per person was $758.
Separate data from the Culture and Tourism Ministry released on April 30 showed that 6.84 million foreign tourists visited Türkiye in the first quarter, an increase of 2.21 percent from a year earlier. Including Turks residing abroad, a total of 9.22 million travelers came to the country, marking a 4.25 percent year-on-year rise.
Germans formed the largest group of foreign visitors at 678,000, up 18 percent. They were followed by Russians at 651,000, up 8 percent, and Bulgarians at 539,000, up 6 percent. Türkiye also welcomed more than 314,000 Britons, an increase of 3 percent. The number of Iranians visiting the country, however, dropped sharply by 28 percent to around 527,000.
In March alone, foreign tourist arrivals in Türkiye rose by 5 percent compared with the same month last year, reaching 2.46 million. This followed a 2.1 percent annual decline in foreign visitors recorded in February.
