Chinese tourists flock to Turkey after pop song 校长 - 带你去旅行

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Xiao Zhang promises to take his girlfriend to "romantic Turkey" in his song "Dai ni qu luxing," which also features a scene from Cappadocia and its hot air balloons.

A Chinese pop song with lyrics referring to “romantic Turkey” has almost doubled the number of tourists from China, Culture and Tourism Ministry data shows.

According to state-run Anadolu Agency, the number of Chinese tourists visiting Turkey reached 191,000 in the first half of 2018, which marks a 91 percent rise on a year-on-year basis.

Xuan Yen Yii, a Chinese tourist who recently visited the western Turkish province of İzmir, told the agency a song released by popstar Xiao Zhang last year directed many of his compatriots to Turkey.

The song, which has been tremendously popular on Chinese social media since its launch, titled “Dai ni qu luxing” (I will take you to travel) includes a line saying “I want to take you to romantic Turkey.”

The main Turkish destinations of the rising number of Chinese tourists are Pamukkale, Bergama, Efes and Cappadocia.

“I would love to see Cappadocia on board a hot air balloon,” said another Chinese tourist, Lii Yunyn, referring to a scene from the song's official video.

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