The number of tourists coming to Antalya, which stands out with its sea, sand, sun, healthy and safe tourism, historical and natural beauties, increased by 12 percent compared to the same period last year, exceeding 7.5 million as of July 17. Russia ranked first among the countries sending the most tourists, while Germany ranked second, England third and Poland fourth.
The European market, which was paused due to EURO 2024 held in Germany between June 14 and July 14, started to move again after the championship.
The city is expected to exceed the target of 17 million tourists by the end of the year, and it is predicted that a new record will be broken with 18 million tourists.
Kaan Kavaloğlu, President of the Mediterranean Touristic Hoteliers and Operators Association, told AA correspondent that they experienced a period of stagnation after the very busy Eid al-Adha holiday, also due to the impact of EURO 2024.
Kavaloğlu, reminding that the championship was held in Germany, one of the source markets, said, “During that period, there was a slowdown in arrivals from Germany to our country. After the championship, our occupancy rates increased to over 90 percent as of the second week of July. We are currently experiencing a high season in Antalya. The European market has revived again.”
1 MILLION EXPATRIATES ARE EXPECTED TO HAVE A HOLIDAY IN ANTALYA
Kavaloğlu drew attention to the fact that they have overcome the effects of the bankruptcy of Munich-based Europe’s third largest tour operator FTI with minimal damage. Kavaloğlu stated that tourists with reservations are brought to Turkey by negotiating with other operators, and that guests who have completed their holidays return to their countries without any problems.
Kavaloğlu stated that it is important for expats living in Europe to have a holiday in Turkey and continued as follows:
“Our expats stay for long periods of time, both vacation and visit their hometowns. This situation reflects very positively on tourism. Until June, nearly 600 thousand European Turks had chosen Antalya. This will continue to increase. Turks living in Europe also worked during EURO 2024. Since the championship is over, they can now come with ease. We expect 1 million expats to vacation in Antalya this year.”
