Turkey’s tourism boom on holiday

ISTANBUL

Tourists flock to Turkey’s warmer southern climes, such as Pamukkale in Denizli, for the start of the annual Eid al-Adha, the country’s most important holiday. Tourism facilities are expected to host nearly 500,000 visitors during Eid. DHA photo

Turkey’s tourism is seeing a boom during the religious festival of Eid al-Adha while the tourism facilities’ occupancy has reached almost full capacity.

The tourism sector is enjoying a fruitful season thanks to the Eid al-Adha and the tourism facilities are expected to host nearly 500,000 visitors, Turkish Hoteliers Association (TÜROFED) Deputy President Mehmet İşler told Cihan News Agency on Oct. 13.

“Despite negative impacts on the tourism sector, Turkish tourism continued to develop. The tourist numbers rose by 10.6 percent in the first eight months from the same period a year earlier,” he said. İşler noted that the recovery in the tourism sector began during the holiday of Eid al-Fitr in August and was sustained in the Eid al-Adha.

İşler stated that the sector was expected to contribute to the economy with 500 million Turkish Liras ($250 million) added-value in this period.

The Eid al-Adha takes place between Oct. 15 and Oct. 18, but the public sector’s employees will be on vacation during nine days, between Oct. 12 and Oct. 20, which motivated people to go on holiday to other cities. Besides, the majority of the employees in the private sector took Oct. 14 off to extend their vacation.

The hotels in Turkey’s southern provinces, which many local and foreign tourists visit particularly during the summer, expect to work at almost full capacity during the holiday. “We are near to the end of the tourism season that will be closed after this nine-day holiday,” Kamil Özer, Muğla Culture and Tourism manager told Anadolu Agency. Özer said local tourists showed interest in Bodrum, Marmaris, Fethiye, Dalyan, Akyaka and Datça coastal districts of Muğla during this holiday because it was nine days long.

Thermal hotels were another popular holiday destination. The northwestern province of Yalova, one of Turkey’s prominent thermal centers, expects to reach full capacity in its hotels, the mayor of Termal district, İsmail Atik told Anadolu Agency. Atik said particularly tourists from Middle Eastern countries preferred to visit thermal hotels.