Turkey records a 4 percent decline in tourist numbers in January

Istanbul was the most visited Turkish city drawing in 339,895 tourists, while tourism magnet Antalya ranked third with 90,024 tourists, below expectations. According to the figures, the western province of Edirne placed second with a total of 104,098 tourists visiting in the same term.

German tourists topped the list of international visitors, followed by Bulgaria and Georgia, with the Russia Federation taking fourth place.

Turkey’s tourism revenues, an important resource to finance the huge current account deficit, reached $21.9 billion in 2008 when 31 million tourists visited.