Turkey welcomes New Year with events

ISTANBUL

Turks welcomed 2022 with small-scaled events and organizations as concerns due to the increasing number of daily COVID-19 cases and fears of the Omicron variant grow.

Families, who spent the night at home, prepared themselves for New Year’s Eve with shopping and celebrate the night among the company of their near and dear ones.

But for those who wanted to spend the night out on New Year’s Eve, many restaurants, hotels and entertainment venues prepared special programs in the Turkish metropolises.

Residents of the Aegean province of İzmir welcomed the new year with four public concerts in four different districts of the city, organized in coordination with municipalities.

An official celebration in Istanbul was not in the plans, but Taksim Square was one of the focal points of celebrations and gathering area of especially tourists.