Tourist numbers on the rise

THE TRNC’s tourism industry is beginning to recover from the effects of the Covid19 pandemic, new figures have indicated.

According to statistics released by the Tourism Planning Department for the first quarter of 2022, the number of foreign tourists staying in touristic accommodation increased from just 2,268 in January-March 2021, to 132,451 for the same period this year, a rise of 5,740 per cent.

The bulk of the tourists visiting North Cyprus between January and March this year, 76 per cent, were Turkish citizens.

The number of overnight stays by tourists also rose dramatically, from 8,790 in the first quarter of 2021, to 424,136 in the first three months of 2022, an increase of 4,725 per cent.

From January to March, the average occupancy rate of touristic facilities in the country rose to 22.5 per cent. This figure was just 3.4 per cent during the same period of 2021.

The TRNC’s touristic bed capacity has risen from 25,948 at the end of March 2021, to 26,258 at the end of March 2022.

The Girne region accounts for 58 per cent of the bed capacity, followed by İskele (25 per cent), Gazimağusa (nine per cent), Lefkoşa (seven per cent) and Lefke (one per cent). The majority of the beds – 61 per cent — can be found in five-star hotels, according to the data.

The number of nonTRNC citizens arriving at the country’s air and sea ports increased by 921.4 per cent in January-March 2022 compared to the first quarter of 2021, from 22,275 to 227,516.

A breakdown by nationality, excluding TRNC and Turkish citizens, showed that Iranians accounted for 14 per cent of the arrivals in January-March 2022, followed by Germans (seven per cent) and British citizens (six per cent).