#Mediterranean Regional Representative Board Of The Association Of Turkish Travel Agencies (Türsab)

Antalya moves towards its 16 million tourist target

Standing out with its healthy and safe tourism, sea, sand, sun, natural beauties and facilities, Antalya offers holiday opportunities to domestic and foreign guests. Tourists from different countries of the world have the opportunity to see the historical and cultural values of the city closely, to swim in the deep blue sea, and to sunbathe on its beaches. According to the information compiled by the AA correspondent from the data of the Antalya Culture and Tourism Directorate, 4 million 761 thousand 451 tourists came to the city, which hosted 3 million 602 thousand 173 people using the airline between January 1 and June 20 last year, in the same period this year. With a 32 percent increase in the number of tourists compared to the same period of the previous year, Antalya is expected to host 16 million tourists by the end of the year. "Last minute bookings are in demand" Rıza Perçin, Chairman of the Mediterranean Regional Representative Board of the Association of Turkish Travel Agencies (TÜRSAB), told Anadolu Agency (AA) that the most tourists came to Antalya this year from Germany. Explaining that the weather also affects the tourist's holiday preference, Perçin stated that the tourist density has increased with the warming weather. Noting that the input costs are reflected in the packages, Perçin said, "Our target in tourism was 16 million. The season has changed a bit, our season will continue until the end of November. We hope that we will reach 16 million." Noting that there has been a change in reservation habits after the epidemic, Perçin stated that "last minute" reservations are now more popular. Emphasizing that Russians spend most of their holidays in Antalya, Perçin said: "Hotels in the city were filled with guests from Germany until the end of May. Visitors from the UK, Poland, Netherlands and Germany markets were plus. The pandemic taught something. Our travel agency friends also entered other markets. Let alone the capitals, we do not know the countries, we hear very little from places where visitors come here, albeit very few. Tourism, travel agencies are the bees of tourism. We work like bees, I hope we will bring 16 million. Tourism has diversified a lot." "There is an increase in almost every market" Hakan Saatçioğlu, Vice President of Professional Hotel Managers Association (POYD), said that tourism activity started to increase significantly in June. Stating that the occupancy rates are pleasing and that there are also surprise markets this year, Saatçioğlu said, “There are significant increases in the Polish and British markets. Right now our number one market is Germany, then the Russians. Next comes the British. These markets will develop further. There is a target of 16 million tourists for Antalya, but we think we can exceed this number." Kemer Region Promotion Foundation President Volkan Yorulmaz stated that there has been a serious increase in the domestic market, especially with the increase of the holiday holiday to 9 days and the holidays in schools. Stating that they had a difficult April and May, Yorulmaz stated that as of June, the figures that will make you smile have begun to be reached. Stating that both international and domestic reservations continue to increase, Yorulmaz said: "Germany and Russia are our two main markets. The domestic market and England are our important markets right behind them. It reaches a serious number in Poland. Apart from this, there are serious demands in the European market, especially in Belgium and the Netherlands. In Eastern Europe, there are also arrivals from countries such as Serbia, Czechia, Moldova and Albania. Market and tourism diversity is very important. Our goal this year is to surpass the 2019 figures, which is an achievable target. We can close the year with a figure in the range of 16-17 million."