Turkish tourism forecast: Smooth sailing ahead

When Turkey's largest tourism fair, the Eastern Mediterranean Tourism and Travel Fair (EMITT), starts tomorrow in İstanbul, Turkey's hotelkeepers can sit back and relax.

Following a problematic year in 2006 Turkey's tourism appears stronger than ever. "We look back on a very strong performance in 2007 and expect an even more successful coming year," says Timur Bayındır, chairman of Turkish Hoteliers' Association (TUROB), in an interview with Today's Zaman.
TUROB boasts a wide range of members from the hotel business, with most of Turkey's four to five-star hotels represented. Although the fair will focus on İstanbul, the association is open to members from all of Turkey and holds events in many cities, including Bodrum, Ankara, İzmir, Van, Kayseri and the Turkish Riviera. Its mission is to enable Turkey's tourism to improve by conducting research on the sector and its problems, all the while searching for solutions.

TUROB works in close cooperation with relevant offices, organizations, corporations, companies and individuals. It is in continuous and active contact with the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism and other political authorities.

2007 was an extraordinarily good year

The current Turkish hotel business situation is "very, very good," Bayındır says. 2007 has already been "extraordinarily good," he says, "but in the coming year, we will exceed these results and grow further."

Indeed, according to the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), Turkey is among the 10 most popular tourist destinations worldwide. With an increase of about 18 percent in tourists visiting Turkey in 2007, the country's tourism market is growing at a rate above the world average and is one of the Mediterranean region's most promising vacation spots.

Decrease of VAT a ‘big success,’ infrastructure problematic

The Turkish tourism sector is well set up, Bayındır says, but he raises several concerns. He cites high energy prices and the weakening dollar as perpetual issues. Additionally, he blames a new fee that requires hotels to pay royalties for music they use in their facilities. "Since this regulation was introduced two or three years ago, many establishments did away with music altogether," he says. Another one of Turkey's problems is infrastructure. Traffic in Turkey is a growing problem as is reaching the country. More regular flights are needed, he insists.

On the other hand, a decrease in the value-added tax (VAT) by the government has already become an incentive to help the tourism business, he says, adding that this decision is considered a success by his organization. "Decreasing VAT has always been one of our members' biggest demands -- and we have succeeded in lowering it," he says, confirming that it has already produced positive results. "If there had been no decrease, we would have been forced to increase prices," he states, "and the prices still remain our primary incentive."

This also shows increased demand by foreign investors, who show growing interest in southern Anatolia, namely, Konya, Mersin and Kayseri. İstanbul remains the focal point for most foreign investment, however, "In the near future, 20,000 beds will be available in İstanbul, all of which will be at high-end hotels. With this new addition, İstanbul's total capacity will increase to 70,000 beds," Bayındır says.

"These investments are very good for Turkey," he underlines. International corporations bring not only their own clients with them but usually seek ways to integrate with Turkish companies. "Administration and organization are usually carried out by the investor, while the whole operational aspect of the business is done by Turks," Bayındır explains. "All in all, Turkey is organized well, and we look optimistically at the year ahead of us," he concludes.

Zaman