Gaziantep cuisine to woo international tourists groups

GAZİANTEP - Anatolia News Agency

Gaziantep is famous for its traditional foods. The city has launched an innovative new project to encourage increased tourists. AA photo

Famous for its traditional foods, the southeastern province of Gaziantep has launched an innovative new project in a bid to encourage increased numbers of gastronomic tourists to the area.

The “Gastronomy World Explores Gaziantep Cuisine” project has been developed in collaboration with the Silk Road Development Agency Tourism Finance Program. The Gaziantep Chamber of Commerce (GTO) Deputy Secretary General Figen Çeliktürk said this marked the growth of an alternative sort of tourism in the city.

Gaziantep has a value of brand name in terms of gastronomy tourism, Çeliktürk said. “The project is expected to make the city a central tourism destination. With an increased focus on food, the number of visitors to the city will swell and tourists will spend more time in the city. The value of the tourism sector in the region will subsequently increase.”

Gastronomy tours

As part of the project, Gaziantep’s cuisine would be promoted both nationally and internationally, she said. “We will organize

gastronomy tours to Gaziantep. This way, tourists visiting the city will stay longer.”

Çeliktürk said the total budget for the project was 172,052 Turkish Liras. The target group was Turkish and foreign tourists interested in gastronomical tourism, as well as food bloggers, gourmets from around the world and non-governmental organizations working in the fields of media and tourism.

A book on Gaziantep culture

Alongside the project, a book on Gaziantep cuisine will be published with the Gaziantep Special Province Directorate and the Association for Friends of the Kitchen, and a promotional film and website will be produced as well.

Çeliktürk said the cookbook will also be translated into English and a promotional event for gourmets will be organized. “We plan to join the Paris Cookbook Fair and Oxford International Food Symposium.”