Number of British Tourists in Northern Cyprus Halves Since 2003

The number of British tourists visiting Northern Cyprus has halved since 2003. In the first five months of this year, only 8,316 tourists from the UK arrived in Northern Cyprus. In the first half of 2003, this number was 16,310.

These figures were reported on Thursday by YeniDuzen columnist Cenk Mutluyakali, citing Deputy Minister of Tourism Serhan Aktunç. It was also reported that, compared to last year, the number of tourists arriving from Sweden and Denmark has decreased.

In 2023, Northern Cyprus was visited by 7,397 Swedish and 4,689 Danish tourists. In the first five months of this year, only 442 Swedes and 433 Danes visited Northern Cyprus. Additionally, the number of Greek Cypriots staying overnight in Northern Cyprus hotels has decreased. Since the beginning of the year, 7,024 people have used this service, compared to 7,525 last year.

At the same time, there has been a sharp increase in the number of tourists coming to Northern Cyprus from Turkey. In the first five months of 2024, 370,520 Turkish travelers visited Northern Cyprus. During the same period last year, this number was 259,770. Experts primarily attribute this to the presence of casinos in Northern Cyprus.