Turkey Open For Business and Welcoming Visitors
The woman overseeing Turkish tourism efforts in this country is insisting that those visiting her homeland can have a worry-free – and safe – holiday in her homeland.
Derya Serbetci Acar said during a Sept. 20 Toronto gathering that this year’s failed coup briefly disrupted tourism-related services, but all are now running normally.
And she said those who visit traditionally popular tourism sites shouldn’t be concerned about their security, with any anti-government violence generally targeting security forces in less-visited locales.
Security measures have been heightened throughout the country, she added.
Turkey, a traditionally hugely popular destination, last year hosted more than 36.2 million visitors, which actually represented a drop of 1.6%.
Canadian visitations have also fallen, with 2013 seeing 199,497 Canadians visit the country, but 2015 seeing 187,615 visitors from Canada.
Nevertheless, Turkey was the sixth most-visited country in the world last year and tourism authorities have set an ambitious goal of hosting 50 million visitors by 2023.
Meanwhile, the director of corporate affairs for the Association of Turkish Travel Agencies told the gathering that her homeland offers visitors “one country, two continents and 1,000 cultures.”
Ela Atakan said Istanbul is in the remarkable position of straddling Europe and Asia, and “it’s a privilege to live in a city that connects two continents.” The continents are linked by bridges and vessels.
Atakan labelled Istanbul a “shopping paradise, from traditional Turkish bazaars to designer stores.”
Visitors can also party till sunrise, she added.
Another focal point of the country’s tourist trade is the archeological site of Ephesus, once the capital of Roman Asia Minor and home to dramatic reminders of several ancient civilizations. The Vatican has also identified an Ephesus-area home as the one in which the Virgin Mary spent her final days.
In all, Turkey has some 10,000 years of history, and has been shaped by 23 civilizations and three major religions, she continued.
Turkey’s sun-soaked Mediterranean coast sees some 10 million foreign tourists a year.
Ayhan Ugur of Turkish Airlines’ Toronto office, noted that the carrier links both Montreal and Toronto with Istanbul. There are three weekly flights from Montreal and six from Toronto.
The airline began in the 1930s with five planes and today has some 335 and “we’re connected to all cultures,” he said.
The Star Alliance Member will “continue to grow,” Ugur added.
Pictured are Zafer Bolukbasi, Turkish Airlines; Darlene Paolucci of the Turkey Consulate General, who’s seen holding a basket of Turkish bagels; Ugur; Susan Avery, Andromeda Consultants; Jackie Bishop Martin, Journey the Globe; Priscilla Leonard, We World Experts; Nalina Williams, Platinum Hospitality Group; Atakan; and Serbetci Acar.
