Türkiye’s Mediterranean gem of Antalya, which hosted approximately 141,000 people in January 2019, was on the holiday route of 219,647 foreign tourists in the same period this year.
The city, which continued to host tourists with the Safe Tourism Certificate program during the global pandemic that affected the world and closed last year with 13.5 million foreign visitors, started 2023 with high expectations.
According to the data of the Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism, some 91,762 foreign tourists arrived by air in the city on Jan. 1-31, 2018, and it hosted 140,856 foreigners in the same period in 2019 when records were broken in tourism. In 2020, the city, where 185,485 foreign guests came in January when the pandemic effects had not yet been felt. It hosted 49,841 foreign tourists in 2021 and 138,604 foreign tourists last year in the shadow of the pandemic.
In the city, where a hopeful atmosphere for the 2023 season is blowing, the number of foreign tourists arriving by air in January reached 219,647, an increase of 58% compared to the previous year.
In the ranking of the countries sending the most tourists, Russia took first place in every period. Some 71,752 guests came from Russia in January. Germany, with 35,214 tourists, the U.K. with 13,512 tourists, Poland with 8,086 tourists and Israel with 7,570 tourists followed by Russia.
Kazakhstan, Ukraine, the Netherlands, Jordan and Belgium took place in the top 10.
Antalya Governor Ersin Yazıcı told Anadolu Agency (AA) that 45-holiday villages and 401 hotels in 5-star concept operate in Antalya, which has a total bed capacity of 643,051, 392,097 of which are 5-star.
Explaining that the activity in the city in the last spring continues in the winter season, Yazıcı said the numbers make the tourism sector and its stakeholders happy.
Yazıcı noted that the "12 months tourism" goal, which has been tried to be made in the city for years, has started to enter its accomplishment phase.
Pointing out that Antalya is a convenient destination not only for the summer season but also for alternative tourism areas, Yazıcı said they also prioritize alternative tourism elements such as congresses, fairs, sports and health apart from the summer season, and that they invest in these areas.
Ülkay Atmaca, Head of the Professional Hotel Managers Association (POYD), said that last year was a very good year and they started 2023 with promising figures.
Emphasizing that the January figures surpassed the January figures of 2019 when tourism was at its brightest, Atmaca said: "The ongoing early reservation has an effect on both the domestic and international markets, and at the same time, most of the passengers who have not been able to leave their homes for the last two winters are trying to travel."
"January figures are very good, A good 2023 is waiting for us. I think a very good season will start after Nevruz," he said.
Expressing that there will be a busy summer season this year, Atmaca stated that Antalya is progressing very well compared to its foreign competitors.
Noting that they hope that 2019 figures will be exceeded this year, Atmaca said, "It was 15.8 million in 2019, and we can easily catch 17 million this year."