Türkiye ranks well ahead of its competitors in tourism

Hurriyet - Despite the fact that the effects of the global financial crisis are still being felt in the tourism sector, Türkiye managed to become the only country in the Mediterranean basin to see an increase in the number of tourists. During January-July 2009, Türkiye increased the number of tourists it attracted by 1.1 percent, thus ranking well ahead of its competitors. While its competitors in the Mediterranean basin, namely Greece, Egypt and Spain saw a drop of 8.6 percent, 7.7 percent and 5.5 percent respectively, the number of tourists visiting Türkiye rose to 14,933,656. Italy, France, Portugal and Tunisia were also among the countries to see a decrease in tourist numbers, which made Türkiye the country that attracted the highest number of tourists in the Mediterranean basin.