Number of cruise passengers coming to Türkiye between January to October increased by 26,8 percent and reached to 1,7 million the Ministry reports. Report also shows that number of ships docking Turkish ports has increased by 3,7 percent and reaching 1,112 comparing the same period of 2023.
The Port of Kuşadası, in southwestern Türkiye, received 501 cruise ships and 791,300 passengers in the January-October period, becoming the busiest port in the country.
Ports in Istanbul received 184 ships with 402,226 passengers, while the cruise port in the southwestern resort town Bodrum saw 92 boats, Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloğlu said.
Meanwhile, ports in the southwestern province of İzmir hosted 153,369 cruise passengers.
As for October, some 295,892 cruise passengers with 195 ships arrived in Türkiye.
Port of Kuşadası hosted 137,898 cruise passengers, followed by Istanbul ports with 64,509 passengers and İzmir ports with 24,508.
“We continue our work to maximize the tourism potential of our peninsular country, and transportation and tourism are the two essential sectors for the economic and social development of Türkiye,” the minister said.
Last year, 1,192 cruise ships visited Türkiye, bringing 1.54 million passengers, up from 993 cruise ships and 1.01 million passengers in 2022.