The beaches of Atakum are more beautiful than the beaches of Miami

Speaking at the 'Sea Tourism Workshop,' Samsun Governor Osman Tavlı stated that the beaches of Atakum are more beautiful than those in Miami, USA.

The Sea Tourism Workshop, which saw the participation of industry representatives and experts, took place at the Şehit Ömer Halisdemir Meeting Hall of Samsun Metropolitan Municipality. At the beginning of the workshop, Prof. Dr. Yetkin Bulut, the Dean of the Faculty of Tourism at OMU, discussed the strengths and weaknesses of sea tourism in Samsun.

Governor Orhan Tavlı, in his speech, mentioned that the city has extensive tourism potential in many areas and emphasized the importance of developing sea tourism, similar to health and other sectors. He expressed that the workshop was organized to contribute to Samsun getting its deserved share in sea tourism, and he wished the first workshop, focusing on sea tourism, to be beneficial for Samsun.

Tavlı highlighted Samsun's potential as a significant destination for tourism in terms of summer, winter, nature, sports, thermal springs, belief, culture, history, and health tourism. He emphasized the presence of the internationally renowned Bird Paradise in Samsun, where more than 7 million migratory birds are hosted annually, and the city serves as a natural center for the Green and Red River Deltas, offering the natural and agricultural products of these deltas to Turkey and the world.

"We see that the beaches in Atakum go beyond those in Miami."

When speaking with tourism experts visiting the city, Governor Tavlı emphasized that Atakum Beach, with its natural sands, lacks nothing compared to the beaches in Miami. He stated, The arrival of the Russian cruise ship to Samsun after many years is important for the promotion of the city. Industry representatives have organized 2 trips to Samsun. In 2024, we will host tourists from cruise ships in Samsun for 40-50 more trips. Samsun has become ready for tourism with its efforts in every field, from agriculture to trade, and has achieved high numbers in hosting domestic guests. With the initiatives launched in the 2023 century, I believe the number of accommodations will also increase. While chatting with tourism experts here, we see that the beaches in Atakum go beyond those in Miami. In fact, in gastronomy, while we try to highlight Samsun's pide, tiridi, and nokul, we don't share with anyone that perhaps the world's most beautiful fish from the clean Black Sea can be enjoyed in Samsun. The most delicious natural fish in Turkey come from the clean Black Sea in Samsun's cuisine. When we talk about sea tourism, the topic of fish should not be forgotten. Samsun's beaches are equipped with Blue Flag beaches with clean sea and sands thanks to the wastewater treatment facilities built by the Metropolitan Municipality. We are a very suitable city for sea tourism as well.'

"The arrival of the Russian cruise ship is a beginning; we look forward to welcoming other friendly countries to Samsun as well."

Orhan Tavlı, expressing the desire to host not only Russian cruise ships but also tourist ships from other friendly countries in Samsun, said, "In terms of sea tourism, the Black Sea and the coast of Samsun show some differences compared to other regions. What you seek in the Mediterranean and Aegean cannot be found here, but the natural coasts, peaceful, and natural beaches of this area attract tourists. These beauties, generally known by local tourists, will also attract foreign tourists with the comprehensive promotion of Samsun by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and tourism stakeholders. In recent years, it has begun to attract the interest of foreign tourists. The arrival of the Russian cruise ship in Samsun is just the beginning. We plan to share the beauty of Samsun with other friendly countries in the Black Sea by increasing the number of voyages. The initial impression, especially from Russian tourists, was that they were fascinated by Samsun. We also host many guests from Europe in Samsun. Many different tourists also come to Samsun for health tourism. I hope our workshop will be beneficial for our country, Samsun, and our region," he said.

The workshop concluded with SWOT analysis moderated by Prof. Dr. Muharrem Tuna and the collection of participants' opinions and analyses after protocol speeches.