Every year, the draw of Turkey, with a history spanning back thousands of years and to numerous civilizations, continues to increase. With its historical palaces, mosques, and uniquely exquisite Bosphorus Strait, museums, archeological excavations, natural beauty and alternative tourism options, when it come to tourism, Turkey continues to be in increasing demand. Turkey has already surpassed nations such as Egypt, Tunisia and Greece in terms of numbers of visitors, and is now competing with the likes of Italy, France and Spain. With tourist numbers reaching 30 million a year, Turkey is fast becoming one of the world's leading tourism nations in the sector.
ISTANBUL HOSTED ONE OUT OF EVERY THREE TOURISTS
According to information from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, in the first six months of the year, a total 12,723,978 tourists visited Turkey. Out of that figure, 4,231,836 visitors came to Istanbul, which means the metropolis hosted one out of every three tourist to arrive in Turkey. The distribution of tourists who came to Turkey in the first six months of the year is as follows: In January, 981,611, in February 997,571, in March 1,460,563, in April 2,168,715, in May 3,232,926 and in June 3,882,592. Compared to figures from the year prior, the number of tourists that visited Turkey in the first six months of the year dropped by 2.33 percent reaching a total 12,723,978 visitors. Last year, 13,027,494 tourists visited Turkey in the first six months of the year. Out of the total number of tourists that arrived to Turkey, 633,025 came on day trips. The majority of tourists who visited during the six month period between Januarys to June, entered Turkey from Istanbul, Antalya and Edirne. In January, Istanbul hosted 451,702 visitors, in February, 494,158 visitors, in March 659,881 visitor, in April 818,868 visitors, in May 1,492,881 visitors, totaling 4,231,836 visitors.
MOST TOURISTS CAME FROM GERMANY
The highest number of visitors to Turkey during the first half of the year were from Germany, at 1,924,108. Russia followed with 1,429,959, England came in third with 895,358, Bulgaria was in fourth with 646,912 visitors and Georgia came in fifth with 589,939 tourists.
Visitors during these months, 9,320,886 visitors came to Turkey by plane, 2,606,079 came by highway, 13,380 came by railway while 783,633 tourists came by sea. During the first six months of the year, a total 1,021,676 tourists came from Algeria, Morocco, Libya, Sudan, Egypt, Tunisia, UAE, Bahrain, Qatar, Iraq, Kuwait, , Lebanon, Jordan, Saud Arabia, Syria and Yemen. Last year, a total 31,456,076 visitors came to Turkey, while in 2010, there were 28,632,204 tourists.
District Culture and Tourism Director Bilgili: "In May, Istanbul broke a historical record by hosting over one million foreign visitors in a single month.
The number of Israeli tourists to visit Antalya has increased by 133.3 percent. Tourists from the United States have also increased by 119 percent, while the number of tourists from Iran dropped by 63 percent. 
While European tourists spend approximately 800 dollars a week in our country, Arab tourists spend four times that amount. The biggest issue in terms of drawing in tourists to the nation’s Eastern Black Sea region is the lack in accommodation.
With the landing of the first flight to arrive to the ATM Dalaman Airport from Blackpool, England passengers were greeted with carnations and Turkish delight upon their arrival. 
The total sum of visiting tourists in Turkey reached 6 million 665 thousand 379 in the first four months of the year.
With 383 beaches, 21 marinas and 13 yachts accredited with Blue Flags, Turkey has now bumped France from its throne to become the third country, following Spain and Greece, to have the highest number of Blue Flags.
Russians residing and vacationing in Antalya's Alanya district commemorated the 68th anniversary of May 9th Victory Day, which marks the Soviet Union’s (USSR) victory over Nazi Germany, in a celebration held at the Goldcity Tourism Complex. 
Miniatürk, a miniature park located on the shore of the Golden Horn in Istanbul which hosts 1/25th scale models of significant structures located throughout the Turkish and Ottoman geography from the past 3,000 years, is seeing an increase in interest every year since it was first opened a decade ago. 
The number of trips taken in Turkey in 2012, decreased by 1.4 percent to reach a total 64,922,000. 
One of India’s most popular magazines, AsiaSpa India has awarded Turkey for being the most favorite spa destination in Europe. 
The Association of Turkish Travel Agencies (TÜRSAB) President Ulusoy: "It is speculated that in 2013 the number of tourists will reach 33 million and tourism revenue will be approximately 31.5 billion dollars.”
The Presidential Çankaya Palace hosted a signing ceremony for eight agreements with Kuwait on Monday. 
The incentives implemented by the government have allowed the nation’s health tourism industry to soar: 250,000 patients from 107 different countries have chosen to receive treatment in Turkey. 
Foreign nationals planning to visit Turkey will now be able to obtain their visas online through an electronic visa application system (e-Visa) launched by the Republic of Turkey on April 17. 
