Syria has recorded a 37% increase in the number of tourists visiting the country during September, with a total number (including expatriates, Arabs and foreigners) of 518,905, compared to 379,289 in September 2008, the Syrian Arab news agency has reported. European tourists' number during the first 9 months had grown by 24% to 272,402, while Gulf tourists' number increased by 19% to 643,447m according to the country's ministry of tourism.