Bankruptcy of German tour operator FTI may hit Antalya’s tourism sector

ANTALYA

The tourism industry in Türkiye’s popular holiday destination Antalya is facing risks from the bankruptcy of the German tour operator FTI.

Earlier this week, FTI, Europe's third-largest tour operator, filed for insolvency in a court in Germany.

It said on June 3 trips that haven't yet started will be canceled or scaled back.

This year, some 400,000 bookings were made through FTI, but no payment has been made yet, according to people from the industry.

FTI, which operates 12 hotels in Türkiye, owns millions of euros to other hotels in the Mediterranean region, they said.

Antalya will definitely feel the pinch from the bankruptcy of FTI, according to Recep Yavuz, the president of the Antalya City Council Tourism Working Group.

“FTI would bring more than 1 million tourists from Europe to Türkiye each year. Currently, there are 25,000 guests who were brought by this operator. Those holidaymakers should be able to return to their countries,” Yavuz said, adding that FTI’s bankruptcy may send tremors across the Mediterranean countries.

What happens next is not clear, said Kaan Kavaloğlu, the president of the Mediterranean Touristic Hoteliers and Investors Association (AKTOB).

“Our priority is to make sure that customers, who had made their bookings through FTI, will still come to Türkiye for holiday,” he added.

They have already started talks with a number of tour operators to resolve the problems stemming from the company’s bankruptcy, he added.

“The situation is not as serious as the bankruptcy of Thomas Cook but still causes worries. FTI owes between 25 million to 30 million euros to the Turkish companies,” Kavaloğlu said.