Antalya caught up with 2019 in the number of tourists

Antalya, which left 6 million tourists behind as of the first week of July, also caught the year 2019, which was recorded as the brightest year of tourism. An image taken at the Antalya International Terminal, on the other hand, revealed Turkey's brand in world tourism. The tourist group from Germany came to Antalya wearing T-shirts with a map of Turkey and the words "I don't need therapy, I just need to go to Turkey". Expressing that the event in question is a good advertisement for Turkey, Antalya City Council Tourism Working Group President Recep Yavuz said, “Holiday is of course a very good therapy, but the address has also been given here. They made a very good promotion, they had posters made and I got my staff everywhere.”
2023 tourism in Antalya goes head-to-head with 2019 data, the brightest year. The city, which hosts tourists from all over the world, surpassed the figure of 6 million in the first week of July. In the city, where 5.5 million tourists are expected only in July and August, sector representatives aim to close the year 2023 with 15-16 million tourists. The rates in the hotels, which are jam-packed especially during the Eid-al-Adha, continue to be filled with foreign tourism after the feast. Although the most tourists to the city by nationalities seem to be from Russia, it is predicted that the Germans will exceed this number in July. It is stated that the Germans who chose Turkey for their holiday exceeded the figures in 2019, and in the continuation of July, this number will rise to the first place.

Going head to head with the brightest year
Evaluating tourism data, Antalya City Council Tourism Working Group President Recep Yavuz said that Antalya has exceeded 6 million and this figure is on par with 2019 data, which is the brightest year of tourism. Noting that there was a serious decrease in the Russian and Ukrainian markets compared to 2019 due to various factors, Yavuz stated that there were increases in other markets.

Russian losses are from Germany, England and Poland
Underlining that the next 2-3 months will be very busy in terms of tourists, Yavuz said, “When we look at the numbers in terms of daily arrivals, there is a good trend. In fact, there was a figure of 95 thousand in one day on Saturday last week, which was fine and one of the top 3 figures. But in terms of its distribution, the industry is not entirely happy yet. Because the loss of nearly 40 percent in the Russian and Ukrainian markets has still not been replaced. The increase in England and Poland, Germany's better performance compared to the previous period, closed this gap to some extent, but could not fill the loss of Russians compared to 2019. Therefore, the regions, hotels and agencies indexed to this market fell short of their own expectations. When we look at Antalya in general, arrivals have been going well since the beginning of July.”

5.5 million tourists in 2 months
Pointing out that the sector's expectation for 2023 is 15-16 million tourists, Yavuz said that 5.5 million tourists will come in July and August and that the expected target can be reached in total.

“The Germans will overtake the Russians in the coming weeks”
Stating that Russian tourists should be much ahead of German tourists under normal conditions, Yavuz pointed out that the number of tourists in the two countries is close to each other and added: “The Germans will overtake the Russians in the coming weeks. Because all the states of Germany, only 3 states, the summer vacation began. The other 13 states will begin their holidays from this week. Summer vacation means traveling for families with children. A significant portion of families with children also prefer Turkey. At the same time, as we can see in the reservation channels in Germany, Antalya is quite ahead this period.”

“Occupancy reaches 98 percent in some regions”
Noting that the occupancy rate in hotels varies according to the regions, Recep Yavuz said, “Currently, 600 - 650 thousand beds go daily with full. In the region, this is 98 percent in some hotels and 85 percent in some hotels. Density rates vary according to regions. Kemer region is a region where the Russian market is very strong, but the occupancy there is not very satisfactory. But I can say that especially the Side region is experiencing its golden age. Side, which is the preferred destination of the Germans, gained a good momentum with the increase in the number of these tourists”

“I wanted to have its posters made and hung everywhere”
Lastly, referring to the photograph of German tourists taken by his sister at the Antalya International Terminal, Yavuz said, “My sister took this photo at the international terminal while she was traveling and sent it to me. I also shared it. Vacation is of course a serious therapy for everyone, we all need a vacation. He expressed this very well, but they also gave the address. So not only a holiday, but a holiday in Turkey makes me very happy and they made a very nice introduction so that there is no need for therapy. I wanted to have its posters made and hung everywhere."