Türkiye tourism spent a year full of records in 2024. 62 million tourists, 61.1 billion dollars of revenue and historical occupancy rates … But there is another story spoken behind the scenes: the hotels transferred to banks, the enterprises that cannot configure and the facilities that are sold for sale. What does this contrast mean? Are we living in the Golden Age, or is a crisis approaching?
We talked to this contradictory picture with Murat Göktuğ Aksu, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Otelinisat.com, one of the most active investment platforms in the tourism sector, and Göksel Akman, General Manager of Jro Investment.
Question: The year 2024 was passed with revenue records in tourism, but it was a year when hundreds of hotels went on sale. How do you interpret this painting?
Murat Aksu: This data is not actually a contradiction, two sides of transformation. Türkiye tourism is growing, but this growth is not reflected equally to every enterprise. In particular, institutionalized, educated second or third generation administration has not taken over, stuck in extended family structures, and hotels are experiencing sustainability problems. Therefore, the number of facilities for sale is increasing. However, according to investors, there is a great investment opportunity, not crisis here.
Question: Why increased the number of hotels entering the execution and bankruptcy processes? Is the foundation of the sector collapsing?
Göksel Akman: The organizational structure is weak, not foundation. The table we observe is that most of the hotels that are available today have not been able to move to professional management culture, digitalized, branded businesses. However, there is no problem with the demand side, there is tourists, there is interest. The problem is on the supply side, ie the business model. And at this point, we come into play.
Murat Aksu: If we define the number of hotels documented by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism as approximately 20,000, an average of 1,000 of these hotels are sold every year and 90 %of the hotels that have been on sale with banks or have executed problems with banks have not been institutionalized and expanded family hotels are formed by families. This is a normal figure in terms of global average when we rate the total number of hotels. As a result, even though family businesses have been successful for many years, it is now difficult to keep up with global competition.
Question: Do you think this process is really an opportunity for the investor, or do you run to the sinking ship ??
Murat Aksu: This is not a “recovery” story, but a “transformation” story. We, as hotelinisat.com, are not just a mediator for sale. We offer the “Buy, Renewal, Digitalization, Brand and Reconstruction” model. We re -operate many assets and turn the investor into producing income in a short time. So here is not a swamp, there is potential. Remember that, the first gold growth of Türkiye tourism experienced in early 1990. The hotels that were implemented at that time were one or two partners. However, over time, the number of partnerships with children and grandchildren found them and twenties in some hotels. As the number of families increased, the shares allocated to the renewal of the hotel decreased and the income of hotels that could not renew itself started to fall into a ball of problems. This is a situation that can happen not only in Tourism but also in the world and in all sectors. Therefore, there is something we always say. Family hotels should also look for ways to institutionalization urgently.
Question: How do investors from abroad read this painting? Doesn’t this wave of sales create insecurity?
Göksel Akman: On the contrary, international investment funds read this transformation opportunity in Türkiye very well. We are currently working with a wide network of investors from Gulf to Europe, from Asia to America via Ote Hotelinisat.com. It is important for them to produce sustainable income and the right management. In Türkiye, both natural resources and destination attraction have this potential.
Question: So how do you think 2025 will pass? Are we going to see more crisis or more purchases?
Murat Aksu: 2025 will be a leap year for Türkiye tourism with 70 million tourists and $ 70 billion. Of course, profitability is not yet at the desired level due to inflation, high exchange rates and high costs. But we have to think globally and act local. Today, all over the world and our country are surrounded by wars and global economic crises. Even in such a global atmosphere, Türkiye has a tourism economy that stays from success, runs from success to success and constantly increases.
We recommend a vision, not just a hotel or facility. We provide professional management support for rent income -oriented investors. Every institutionalized entity becomes the opportunity of corporate investor. So we focus on transformation, not crisis.
QUESTION: Most of the small -large hotlers in Türkiye are management of families and 2nd or 3rd generations. What do you think these family businesses should do? What are your recommendations?
Göksel Akman: Families should act with strategic steps, not emotional ties and not to professional management. In this process, we are with them with services such as professional operator support, renovation and brand matching. The future of Türkiye tourism will be shaped by how accurate these decisions are taken.
Murat Aksu: We will also be happy to good news through you that we are launching a special training program for the development of sustainable growth and professional management skills of family hotels with a university as a university as Ote Hotinisat.com Roof Brand Jro Brand.
This program, called “Institutionalization and Digitalization Certificate Training Program in Family Hotels, aims to make significant contributions to family hotels with its content prepared by leading names in the sector.
Göksel Akman: Yes, this comprehensive training program will help them to remain competitive in the sector by modernizing the management processes of family hotels with digitalization and corporate governance principles, and participants will specialize in basic issues such as establishment of corporate structure, customer experience management, digital marketing and social media strategies.
Türkiye tourism is not a break, but a transformation process. In this transformation, some business will remain in the game, some will be disabled. But what is clear is that the game itself is growing. And investors rewrite the rules of this new game through platforms like hotelinisat.com.
Tourism is no longer just touristy, an economic, investment -oriented and corporate area. Türkiye is at the center of this transformation. Restructuring opportunities for the owners of the hotel, and strong growth and foreign exchange income for new investors are at the door.
