A landmark step by the Ministry of Youth and Sports to open up university dormitories for the summer to the youth is seeing growing interest. The "Travel Lover" scheme provides free accommodation to people between the ages of 18 and 25 in most dormitories across Turkey.

Minister Mehmet Muharrem Kasapoğlu says they received nearly 20,000 bookings and travelers since the program started on July 15.

Accommodation is the main challenge for young tourists amid rising prices in the country, especially at peak season when most hotels are fully booked. The ministry’s initiative eliminates the accommodation woes of the youth seeking to visit the country's historic and cultural attractions.

The stays are limited to three days at dormitories operated by the ministry’s dormitory directorate serving millions of students across the country. Holidaymakers do not have to be students to be eligible for accommodation but they are advised to book in advance amid growing demand.

Quoted by the Sabah newspaper in an article published on Sunday, Kasapoğlu said the dormitories were "unique" in the world due to the services offered to residents and the level of comfort. The minister said dormitories have served multiple functions in recent years, pointing out that they were used to quarantine people who arrived or were evacuated from countries during the peak of COVID-19 pandemic. "They are also shelters for people with nowhere to go during natural disasters," he added. "Our dormitories are as comfortable as hotels and we see a huge interest. We have a call center for youth and see most callers ask about the program," he stated.

Dormitories will be open for holidaymakers until Sept. 1, shortly before the start of school year for most universities. "We want our youth to become familiar with the cultural and historical wealth of Turkey, to tour our beautiful country, meet new people and have unforgettable memories," Kasapoğlu says.

Free stays are part of a larger summer initiative for the Turkish youth, which also includes free passes to more than 300 museums in the country's 81 provinces.

Last month, the ministry launched its "Genç Ne Sever" ("What Does the Youth Like") platform.

The platform aims to provide equal opportunities for young people from cities all across Turkey to access cultural, artistic, sports and travel activities to support their socialization and self-development.

According to the ministry press release, the youth will receive a digital Museum Card free of charge for them to be able to visit museums and cultural sites as much as they like as part of the "Genç Ne Sever" initiative, including the Galata Tower, the Göreme Open Air Museum, the Painting and Sculpture Museum, the Pamukkale Travertines and the Zeugma Museum. The ministry, in cooperation with the private sector, also occasionally provides free tickets to the cinema, theater, concerts, festivals and sports competitions throughout the summer as well as gift certificates from different brands and travel tickets. The event itinerary can be followed via gencnesever.com.

Ethem Yıldırım is among the young holidaymakers benefiting from free accommodation. A Sakarya University student, Yıldırım used to prefer camping in tents for holidays in previous summers. This year, he chose Sultan Çelebi Mehmet dormitory in the northwestern province of Edirne, one of stopovers of his holiday. Yıldırım started out earlier and traveled from Muğla in the southwest to Çanakkale further north, stopping by Aydın, the Ephesus ruins and Balıkesir, where he set up his tent. After returning home to Istanbul, he decided to hit the road when he found out about ministry's program. "I wanted to see historical mosques here in Edirne and other places of attraction. Free stay is a great opportunity for people who love traveling," he told Anadolu Agency (AA) in an interview last week. "It is really great and I recommend it to fellow holidaymakers," Yıldırım said. He now plans to travel further, to Edirne's neighbors Kırklareli and Tekirdağ, before leaving for the Black Sea region, booking accommodation at dormitories.