Istanbul welcomed a record 5.24 million tourists in the first four months of the year, according the Istanbul Culture and Tourism Ministry.
The number of foreign visitors to Istanbul from January through April surged 9.94% compared to the same period of the previous year.
Only in April, the city hosted 1.48 million tourists, compared to 1.29 mln in the same month last year, resulting in a surge of 14.6% year-over-year.
Leading the list of nations with the most arrivals to Istanbul last month was Russia, with 167,824 tourists, followed by Germany, Iran, the U.S., France, the U.K. and Saudi Arabia.
The number of foreign visitors to Türkiye in general reached 3.61 mln in April. Arrivals from January through April rose 11.8% year-over-year to nearly 10.7 million.