site.btaTurkiye's Cruise Tourism on the Rise

The number of tourists visiting Turkiye via cruise ships surged by 20.21% between January and November, according to the General Directorate of Maritime Affairs at Turkiye's Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure. Data released by Dogan News Agency show that 1,854,364 cruise passengers visited the country during that period.

A total of 1,167 cruise ships docked at Turkish ports, with the Aegean resort of Kusadasi emerging as the busiest destination in the first eleven months of the year. It welcomed 520 cruise ships and 818,203 passengers. Other popular destinations included Istanbul, Izmir, Marmaris, and Cesme.

Smaller ports such as Bodrum, Alanya, Fethiye, Marmaris, Dikili and Bozcaada also recorded impressive growth in cruise traffic compared to the previous year, said Dogan News Agency.

In addition, Turkiye's Black Sea ports - notably Amasra, Trabzon and Samsun - have emerged as promising new destinations for cruise tourism.

Turkiye, surrounded by four seas, boasts 25 cruise ports in total. The country has been investing heavily in cruise tourism in recent years, Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloglu told Anadolu Agency recently.

With cruise tourism steadily expanding, the sector is expected to end the year with record-breaking numbers.