Türkiye on top of summer holidaymakers' list

ANTALYA

Türkiye ranks first in bookings in the tourism market of the United Kingdom, Benelux and Scandinavian countries and Germany, a sector representative has announced.

Evaluating the year 2024 for Türkiye and Antalya tourism after the ITB Berlin Tourism Fair, Kaan Kavaloğlu, the president of the Mediterranean Touristic Hoteliers Association, mentioned that initial data was collected from the World Travel Market WTM London in November and the Utrecht Fair in the Netherlands.

Emphasizing the significance of the ITB Berlin Fair as the most important tourism fair for the mass tourism movement, Kavaloğlu stated that it allows them to observe how the season will begin and take shape, as all tour operators, including German and British ones, are present.

Referring to the goals announced by Culture and Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy of attracting 60 million tourists and $60 billion in tourism revenue, Kavaloğlu believed that Antalya will exceed 17 million tourists this year.

Kavaloğlu noted that the European Union has poorly recovered from the pandemic and is now trying to generate demand for tourism activities in its own domestic market, such as Spain, Italy, France, Greece and Portugal.

However, he emphasized that world tourism without Antalya and Türkiye is not possible, as they offer a cost-benefit analysis that is favorable to consumers.

He also highlighted that during the meetings with tour operators at the Berlin Fair, it was evident that Türkiye is currently in first place in terms of sales from the U.K., Benelux and Scandinavian countries and Germany.

Assessing the Russian market, Kavaloğlu mentioned that the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, which are key source markets for Türkiye, is a significant disadvantage. Kavaloğlu expressed that the end of this war at the beginning of the second half of the season would be very positive for tourism.

Additionally, the Israel-Palestine tension in the immediate south of Türkiye also affects the arrival of tourists from the Middle East.