The process of becoming a global city and tourism policies towards İstanbul

Global cities tend to thrive in tourism as well as other aspects compared to other cities. In Turkey, Istanbul is among the top contenders to be a global city. This thesis will analyse the influx of foreign tourists to Istanbul both qualitatively and quantitively. The nationalities of tourists that come to Istanbul will be compared to Turkey, Europe and the World. The statistics derived from many national and international foundations will be used to analyse the politics of tourism as well as examining the strategies of many leaders within the tourism industry. While the amount of tourism to Turkey has been declining in comparison to Europe and the rest of the World in the last eight years, Istanbul has seen a steady increase. Quality of tourists in regards to their incomes, education and background has seen a decrease for Istanbul over the years however there has been an increase in tourists from the Middle-East and Independant State countries to make up for this decline. The overall change in the profile of visiting tourists has also reflected on the tourism sector and the tour packages available. The political tourism industry analysed in the thesis that covers the periods of 1980 to 2018 has mirrored upon the change in the profile of the visiting foreign tourists. As a result of this despite being a significant historical, cultural and economic city, Istanbul has been limited in the profile of tourists that have visited.