by Burak Akinci

ANKARA, Feb. 19 (Xinhua) -- Turkey's annual tourism revenue rose to all time high in 2019, making the transcontinental nation one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world, a boom to which diversification is key, industry professionals said.

Turkey attracted a record number of foreign visitors of over 45 million people in 2019, a rise of 14.1 percent from the previous year, according to official data.

Turkey's tourism revenues also hit 34.5 billion U.S. dollars in 2019, a new record high, according to statistical data. The figure jumped by 17 percent last year, up from 29.5 billion dollars in 2018.

Istanbul, the country's economic and touristic hub straddling the European and Asian continents, was the top arriving destination with nearly 15 million tourists, accounting for 33 percent of all foreign visitors in 2019.

The Mediterranean resort city of Antalya, with its numerous historic sites and sandy beaches dubbed the "Turkish riviera" followed with 14.6 million foreign visitors last year.

With these record high numbers, Turkey became the sixth most visited country in the world, according to recently revealed figures by the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO).

Erkan Yagci, head of the Mediterranean Touristic Hoteliers Association (AKTOB), said Turkey experienced a swift recovery recently and continues to prove itself as a major destination, constituting a valuable asset for the economy recovering from a recession.

He added that tourism professionals have now focused on the country's new tourism strategy and are working to increase the country's share in global tourism receipts.

The new tourism strategy targets over 75 million tourists and 65 billion dollars in tourism revenue by 2023, the 100th anniversary of the foundation of the Turkish Republic.

Tourism professionals have hailed last year's promising figures and pointed out that diversification efforts launched more than a decade ago have started to bear fruit.

"Turkey is not only sun, sand and sea, this combo is of course a vital source of revenue, but I think that we have a lot more to offer besides this traditional trio," Serkan Yagci, a travel agency manager from Ankara told Xinhua.

"We have the cultural tourism, and also health, thermal and cruise tourism which are going quite well, and as it was the case for last year, we are looking also foreign visitors for gastronomy fairs in major cities, there is a lot of interest from foodies who want to discover new tastes," he said.

Yagci insisted on the importance for travel agencies to offer visitors a maximum of options outside the hotel and to let them discover natural and historic beauties of the region that they are visiting in Turkey, host to various civilizations over thousands of years.

According to Ali Bilir, vice chairman of Association of Turkish Travel Agencies (TURSAB), Turkey has diversified its tourism industry to a great extent, adding new sites to its list of destinations while working hard toward the goal of hosting 75 million guests by 2023.

He said the security scenario has improved in the past few years, which has attracted more and more people and created a positive perception in the minds of travel enthusiasts.

Under the Health Transformation Programme which began in 2003, Turkey has become one of the world's leading countries in the healthcare sector.

The country has succeeded in attaining high standards both for its hospitals and healthcare professionals with the help of the programme over the past decade.

Together with medical tourism and thermal tourism, medical care services for elders and the disabled is another important part of health tourism.

According to Bilir, European countries, which are the most important target market for Turkey, will have a substantial elderly population. Turkey will serve these people with its developed facilities in coming years.

Turkish Culture and Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy announced for his part ambitious targets for 2020 with 58 million tourists and revenues of 41 billion U.S. dollars, indicating that promotional activities will be expanded throughout the year. Enditem

Related

Go to Forum >>0 Comment(s)