Türkiye continues to move steadily toward its tourism goals and starting this year, it plans to take firm steps toward an ultimate revenue goal of $100 billion (TL 2.98 trillion), a senior official said Saturday.
Culture and Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy stated that despite various global instabilities, negative developments in the surrounding areas, wars and last year's devastating earthquakes, dubbed as "disaster of century," Türkiye continues to progress steadily toward its tourism goals.
Ersoy, in his speech during a meeting organized by the Antalya Union of Chamber of Tradesmen and Craftsmen (AESOB), reported that a record number of visitors were hosted in Antalya last year.
Mentioning that the exact tourism figures would be announced by the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) at the end of this month, Ersoy recalled that the southern tourism gem closed the previous year with a visitor count of 15.7 million.
He also said they expected the number of tourists Türkiye hosted during the year to have surpassed 56.5 million.
Emphasizing that these are record numbers, Ersoy conveyed that tourism revenues have also increased in line with the medium-term program (MTP) and the set goals.
The provincial culture and tourism directorate announced last week that Antalya welcomed about 15.69 million tourists from January through December, surpassing its earlier peak set in 2019 at 15.28 million.
Driven by arrivals from Russia and Germany, Antalya attracted a significant amount of tourists from the United Kingdom and Poland throughout last year, which sector officials found promising for the upcoming season as well.
"Despite many global instabilities, negative developments in its environment, wars and the 'disaster of the century,' Türkiye continues to steadily advance toward its goals in tourism," Ersoy said.
"Starting from this year, we are taking firm steps toward our ultimate goal of $100 billion in tourism by breaking records and increasing the number of visitors and income every year."
Tourism revenue climbed 53.4% to a record high of nearly $46.3 billion in 2022 as the lingering effects of the pandemic dissipated and Russian arrivals skyrocketed after Moscow invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24. Income rose over 20% from a year earlier to $42 billion in first nine months of 2023.
Furthermore, the minister expressed the importance of a well-planned effort involving various stakeholders to achieve the ambitious target.
Ersoy underscored the necessity for collaboration among all stakeholders, not just the ministry, to improve tourism. He highlighted the responsibilities of local authorities in fulfilling infrastructure investments in line with the set goals.
The minister pointed out that significant emphasis is given to the infrastructure efforts in Antalya, which is a tourism city, including capacity expansion at Antalya Airport and the acceleration of highway construction between Antalya and Alanya.
He highlighted the importance of improving urban transportation to make it easier for tourists to explore beyond their all-inclusive hotels.
Ersoy also mentioned the government's focus on cultural and artistic activities, with substantial investments in the "Geleceğe Miras" ("Legacy for the Future") Project.
He urged people to visit the ancient city of Side in Antalya, where extensive excavation, restoration and preservation efforts are underway.
The minister emphasized the government's commitment to integrating cities into tourism through events like the Culture Road Festival, aiming to extend tourism activities throughout the year.
Additionally, Ersoy highlighted the importance of wastewater treatment facilities in sustainable tourism, mentioning the ministry's involvement in such investments alongside the responsibilities of metropolitan municipalities.
Ersoy concluded by noting Türkiye's and Antalya's significant progress in obtaining Blue Flag certifications for facilities and beaches in recent years. He mentioned ongoing efforts to launch a wastewater treatment facility in the district of Kemer and affirmed the ministry's commitment to intervene in necessary areas to ensure environmental standards are met.