Istanbul is the ideal city destination, with one foot in the East and the other in the West, and a mesmerizing fusion of sights, sounds, and colors. This, largest city by population in Turkey and a top tourist destination, hit a 10-year high in monthly foreign visitors this July, drawing 1.8 million to the historic metropolis. istanbul turkey

Compared to last July’s figure of 1.1 million, foreign visitors surged by 56%, with 1.7 million coming by air to the city and 28,827 by sea, according to Istanbul Provincial Culture and Tourism Directorate data released Wednesday.

Compared to the same period last year, the number of arrivals by air shot up by over half, while those arriving by sea skyrocketed nearly 900%.

Istanbul also welcomed nearly 40% of all foreign visitors in the country, or 8.5 million, in the first seven months of the year

Türkiye itself attracted over 23 million foreign visitors this January to July, surging 128% annually, said the official data.

Germans contributed the lion’s share of visitors to Istanbul with 142,077, followed by Russia with 133,218, the US with 97,355, and Iran with 94,708.

Istanbul hosted some one-third of the total visitors who visited the country in the first seven months of the year.

This April-June, Türkiye’s tourism revenues surged 190% from a year earlier to $8.72 billion, said data from the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat).

Culture and Tourism Minister Mehmet Ersoy had previously said Türkiye is aiming for $37 billion in tourism revenues and 47 million tourists this year, raising its earlier targets of $35 billion and 45 million arrivals. istanbul turkey

If you are preparing to visit the city that has been home to three empires, the Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman, and its unique blend of Christian and Islamic sites, do not miss: