Russians Led Tourist Flow Growth to Turkey in July

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In July 2025, Russia recorded the largest increase in tourist arrivals to Turkey among key source markets, according to the Association of Tour Operators of Russia (ATOR) citing data from Turkey’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism. However, overall tourist flow from Russia over the first seven months remained below last year’s level.

Turkey welcomed 6.97 million foreign visitors in July, a 5% drop year-on-year — the steepest summer decline in the post-pandemic era. Among the key markets, Russia showed growth of 3.4%, reaching 953,733 visits. Poland ranked second, with arrivals up 2.8% to 328,560.

Germany led by total visitor numbers with 981,005 arrivals, though down 5.3%. The UK followed with 597,155 (-9.6%), while the Netherlands entered the top five with 260,242 visitors (-0.4%), displacing Iran (-18.9%).

Tourist flows outside the top five markets fell 6.9% year-on-year, with notable declines from Romania, Bulgaria, Saudi Arabia, France, Belgium, Austria, Kazakhstan, Georgia, Azerbaijan, and the United States (-21.9%).

Russia’s Regional Presence

In July, Russia consolidated its position mainly in Antalya, which accounted for nearly 65% of Russian arrivals (618,394, +3.4%). Istanbul attracted 199,600 Russians (+3.95%), or 20.9% of the total. In Muğla province on the Aegean coast, 79,000 Russians visited (+0.9%).

For January–July 2025, Antalya captured 56.9% of Russian arrivals (-0.6%), followed by Istanbul with 1.13 million (31.7%, -2.7%), and Muğla with 5.6% (+2.5%). Another 5.8% of Russian tourists visited Izmir, Ankara, Mersin, as well as via sea cruises and land crossings.

Seven-Month Results

Between January and July 2025, Turkey welcomed 28.37 million foreign tourists, down 2.1% from 2024. Russia ranked first with 3.56 million visits (-1.3%), followed by Germany (3.40 million, -2.8%), the UK (2.35 million, -3.5%), Iran (1.61 million, -8.1%), and Bulgaria (1.48 million, -8.8%).

ATOR previously downgraded its summer 2025 forecast for Russian arrivals to Turkey from 3.1 million to 2.7–2.75 million, citing weak June growth (+1.8%) and hotel discounting due to low occupancy.

Despite this, Turkey remains the leading outbound market for Russians in August package sales, though interest is rising in Vietnam, Egypt, the Maldives, and Georgia. Demand for Russian beach resorts has declined.

Tourism Revenue

Turkey’s tourism revenues in H1 2025 reached a record $25.7 billion, despite fewer visitors. Analysts note that more tourists prefer staying inside hotel complexes, boosting on-site spending.