Turkish metropolis Istanbul welcomed over 13.1 million foreign tourists in the first three quarters of 2023, official data shared Monday suggested, as this year’s robust momentum in the tourism sector reflected positively on the city spanning two continents.

According to a written statement from the Culture and Tourism Ministry, in September, Istanbul saw a 1.55% increase in arrivals when compared to the same month last year, with 1,631,963 foreign visitors.

The influx of foreign visitors to the city in September was led by arrivals from Russia (168,925), followed by Germany (119,681) and visitors arriving from Iran (111,688).

Some 87,670 U.S. tourists visited Istanbul in the same period. They were followed by 64,980 British visitors and 46,547 from France.

From January through September, Istanbul hosted 13.15 million foreigners, the data showed, up 11.61% compared to the same period last year.

Total arrivals to the city thus accounted for nearly a third of 39.2 million tourists who arrived in Türkiye in the nine months.

Tourism is a critical source of revenue for the country as President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his government focus on reducing the current account deficit to tackle stubborn inflation.

Last year’s complete rebound from the pandemic fallout saw the number of tourists near a record, generating all-time high revenues and prompting the government to raise its annual estimates.

The government sees foreign arrivals reaching 60 million this year, which it estimates will hit 90 million in 2028.

For the income, it sees it rising to $55.6 billion this year, while it sees $100 billion in revenue from the sector five years from now.

The first choice for visitors arriving in the city via air in September was Istanbul Airport, holding a share of 73.30% among the total number of foreigners visiting.

In September, some 45,156 foreign visitors arrived in Istanbul by sea, with a growth rate of 24.81% compared to the same month a year ago.

Meanwhile, the occupancy rate of accommodation facilities in Istanbul in August was 68.33%, according to the data from the Culture and Tourism Ministry.

Tourism contributes about 10% to Türkiye’s gross domestic product (GDP). In addition, around 1.7 million people worked in accommodation and food services in 2022 – about 5% of total employment.