ISTANBUL, July 31 (Xinhua) -- The number of tourists visiting Türkiye in the first six months of this year has increased by 17 percent compared to the same period last year, said Turkish Culture and Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy on Monday.
Speaking at a meeting in Istanbul, Ersoy said the number of tourists visiting the country reached 22.9 million in the first half of this year.
"Türkiye achieved this despite the impact of the earthquake and the election process," Ersoy was quoted as saying by the daily Hurriyet, referring to the February tremors and the elections in May.
The country received 51.4 million tourists in 2022, earning it a revenue of more than 46 billion U.S. dollars.
The tourism income reached 21.7 billion dollars in the first six months of the year, up by 27 percent compared to last year, which is above the government's expectations, the minister said, adding that the country aims to make a tourism turnover of 56 billion dollars throughout this year.
