Dear Mr. President, how do you think 2017
will be in terms of Turkish Tourism? What
are your expectations?
For the Turkish tourism industry 2016
proved to be a very tough year. Many events,
such as the plane crisis with Russia, the
refugee problem, geopolitical developments
around our country, rising terrorist incidents
worldwide, and the treacherous coup attempt
on July 15 all negatively impacted on the
tourism industry. According to the Republic
of Turkey Ministry of Culture and Tourism,
the number of foreign tourists visiting our
country in 2016 decreased by 30.05% to 25.3
million. Likewise, tourism revenue in 2016
decreased by 29.74% to just over US$22 billon
As a result, due to the events I mentioned,
we ended 2016 with a negative balance. To
summarize, 2016 was a year in which every
possible adverse event happened together,
resulting in a significant decline in almost
every source market that sends tourists
to Turkey. According to data obtained from
the Republic of Turkey Ministry of Culture
and Tourism, the number of foreign tourists
visiting Turkey in January-February 2017
decreased by 8.12% compared with the same
months of the previous year, to 2.22 million.
The positive development during this period
is the significant increase in the number of
tourists visiting from what is primarily our
country’s second market, Russia, as well as
from other countries, such as Azerbaijan,
Iran, Georgia, Ukraine, and Saudi Arabia.
Even so, neither the decrease in the overall
number of visitors in January-February, nor
the increase in the overall number of visitors
from Russia, Azerbaijan and Iran will enable
us to make predictions for the whole of 2017.
This is because each market has its own
dynamic. We need a little more time before
prospects for 2017 will become clear.
The fact that the events that caused the
negative impacts during 2016 are decreasing
and provided no new negativities occur, will
surely contribute positively to the increase in
the number of tourists and tourism revenues
in the coming periods.
What should a tourist pay attention to when
planning a holiday in Turkey?
Turkey, despite the wars in the surrounding
countries and the domestic terrorist
incidents, is one of the safest countries in
the region and the world. Tourists can come
to visit all our regions, all our cities, with
peace of mind. They can be sure that they
will find themselves in a environment more
comfortable than their own. We recommend
that they choose their destinations and their
means of transport based on their holiday
expectations. Following the written and visual
media about our country will guide them and
help them make their decisions more easily.
What do you think about the alternative
tourism options Turkey offers?
In terms of its visitors and the amount of
revenue they generate, Turkey is one of the
most important tourism destinations in the
world. According to data from the United
Nations World Tourism Organization, Turkey is
the 6th most visited country in the world, and
is placed 12th in terms of tourism revenue.
There is no doubt that mass tourism plays
a very important role in Turkey’s success. A
significant number of our country’s touristic
visitors come during the summer months.
Without hindering the efforts being made for
mass tourism, which take Turkey to the higher
levels in terms of world ranking, we need to
develop alternative tourism options that could
diversify tourism and make it a year-round
economic activity. If we are able to spread
this increase in demand during the summer
season throughout the year, we will be able
to make our success in tourism permanent.
Indeed, in recent years important steps
have been taken in this regard. Even though
this perception has begun to to change as a
result of the actions taken in time, we need
to concentrate on areas such as alternative
tourism options, culture tourism, congress
and meeting tourism, incentive tours,
shopping tourism, health tourism and faith
tourism. There is much that can be done
in these areas of tourism as they can be
significant sources of revenue for our country.
Which regions of Turkey do tourists coming
from the Middle East and Gulf States
prefer?
A majority of the visitors from the Middle
East and Gulf States prefer Istanbul,
whereas our thermal tourism centers, such
as Bursa and Yalova, have been in serious
demand in recent years. The highlands in the
Eastern Black Sea region are also among the
destinations that are particularly attracting
the attention of Arab tourists. Our guests from
the Gulf Countries who wish to have their
holidays by the sea have become interested
in destinations like Marmaris, Bodrum and
Antalya in recent years.
Citizens from the GCC (Gulf Cooperation
Council) countries in particular have a
serious love for Turkey. Do you have any
special efforts for this region?
The Ministry of Culture and Tourism’s
publicity strategy has played a very serious
role in the success Turkey has achieved in
tourism. In this process, many institutions
representing the tourism industry, primarily
TÜRSAB, have made significant efforts to
promote Turkey abroad. However, it is also
true that we have to increase our publicity
and marketing efforts much more in order
that we can reach higher levels in world
tourism. In this context, TÜRSAB is fulfilling
its responsibilities. As TÜRSAB, we are
participating in international tourism fairs
and promoting Turkey’s tourism potential
in other countries. With the Travel Turkey
International Tourism Fair we organize,
we are trying to attract the attention of the
international tourism community. As well as
introducing our country with the workshop
events we organize abroad, we also carry
out activities to realize the international
organizations in Turkey. In this context, we
took part in the TİTE-Tehran International
Tourism Fair, which was held for the 10th
time in the Iranian capital, Tehran, between
6-9 February, and we will also participate in
the Arabian Travel Market (ATM), which will
be held in Dubai from 24-27 April 2017.
How does the number of Arab tourists
coming to our country compare with the
number of tourists in general? Do you have
the data for this?
According to Republic of Turkey Ministry
of Culture and Tourism, the number of
foreign tourists visiting our country in 2016
was 25.3 million. Of these, 3.8 million were
visitors from the Middle East and the Gulf
States. We are hoping that the number of
visitors coming to our country in 2017 from
the Middle East and the Gulf States will be in
the region of 4 to 4.5 million.
What needs to be done in order to increase
the number of tourists coming from the
Middle East and the Gulf States?
We can list what needs to be done under the
following headings.
By increasing the number of guides who
speak Arabic and Persian.
By increasing publicity and advertising
activities.
By increasing the number of brochures and
promotional materials published in Arabic
and Persian that publicize Turkey.
By increasing publicity about Turkey on the
internet.
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