Türkiye seeks to attract health tourists with detox, healing camps

ISTANBUL

Foreign visitors will increasingly flock to Türkiye not just for treatment, but also for detox and rejuvenation, as the country ramps up efforts to become a global hub for wellness and medical tourism, a sector representative has said.

“Patients shouldn't come only for treatment. We want to attract those seeking rejuvenation, aesthetic care and preventive health services like check-ups,” Behlül Ünver, general manager of the International Health Services Inc. (USHAŞ), said at a press briefing.

Türkiye already ranks among the top five global destinations for medical tourism, thanks to the high demand for procedures such as hair transplants, organ transplants, eye surgeries, oncology treatments, obesity surgery and dental care.

According to Ünver, the country plans to broaden its offerings beyond traditional medical procedures to include wellness programs and "healing camps" focused on detox, anti-aging and aesthetic services.

Ünver noted that Türkiye hosted around 1.5 million health tourists in 2024, generating approximately $3 billion in revenue.

Now, officials are aiming for $20 billion in annual revenue from health tourism.

Within the scope of such efforts, they also plan to expand thermal tourism offerings by adding six cities to the international “thermal cities” network.

With over 1,100 thermal springs and 500 facilities nationwide, they target $5 billion in annual revenue from thermal tourism within five years, up from the current $300 million.

To regulate the growing health tourism sector and protect patients, authorities created the “Health Türkiye” platform, which aims to combat unlicensed operations.

So far, nearly 1,000 providers have joined the platform, which is endorsed by 12 countries for referring patients to Türkiye.