As reported by Turkish news agencies, citing a statement by the head of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the Republic of Turkey, Omer Celik, the number of foreign tourists visiting cities and resorts in Turkey in the period January-August 2014 increased by 7% compared to last year's statistics.
Mr. Celik noted that according to the most optimistic forecasts of tourism analysts, the number of visitors should have increased by 4, maximum 5%. The figures for the first 8 months of 2014 are an absolute record for tourist visits, which is undoubtedly a powerful stimulating factor for the further development of the Turkish holiday industry.
The Minister emphasized that the growth of tourist traffic from Russia and the Arab world made a huge contribution to setting the historical record, which ultimately more than compensated for the slight decline in Turkey's popularity among guests from Germany, who are traditionally the number one tourist.
As for the distribution of traffic between countries, Germany is in first place, Russia is in second place (only slightly behind the leader), and Great Britain is in third place.
