Türkiye has revised upwards its tourism revenue target from a previous $35 billion to $37 billion this year, Culture and Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy has said as tourism revenues soared 190 percent in the second quarter, Trend reports citing Hurriyet Daily News.
The country now eyes welcoming 47 million foreign tourists in 2022, also revising this target from a previous 42 million tourists, he also said.
Some had doubted that the targets set for this year could be met amid the conflict in the Black Sea, the minister said, referring to the war between Ukraine and Russia.
“If there will not be any other global troubles, we will revise upward targets again. If things go as we predict, the number of tourists will surpass the 2019 level,” he said.
2019 marked the best year ever for the tourism sector when 51.7 million holidaymakers visited the country and tourism revenues reached $34.5 billion.
Ersoy also said Türkiye fared better than its competitors, such as Spain, Italy and Greece, referring to data comparing the first four months of 2019 and 2020.
Türkiye lost fewer tourists in those periods compared to those countries, he added.