Tourism in Turkey

Istanbul

Istanbul is one of the most important tourism spots not only in Turkey but also in the world. There are thousands of hotels and other tourist-oriented industries in the city, catering to both vacationers and visiting professionals. Turkey's largest city, Istanbul, has a number of major attractions derived from its historical status as capital of the Byzantine and Ottoman Empires. These include the Sultan Ahmed Mosque (the "Blue Mosque"), the Hagia Sophia, the Topkapı Palace, the Basilica Cistern, the Dolmabahçe Palace, the Galata Tower, the Grand Bazaar, the Spice Bazaar, and the Pera Palace Hotel. Istanbul has also recently become one of the biggest shopping centers of the European region by hosting malls and shopping centers, such as Metrocity, Akmerkez and Cevahir Mall, which is the biggest mall in Europe and seventh largest shopping center in the world. Other attractions include sporting events, museums, and cultural events.

In January 2013, the Turkish government announced that it will build the world's largest airport in Istanbul. The operation has an invested 7 billion euros and will have its first part of a four-part plan completed by 2017.

As a consequence of the continuous fall in tourism to Turkey in recent years, as of October 2016 in Istanbul's famous bazaar once crowded shopping streets are almost empty, "the streams of tourists who used to visit the market each day have trickled to a halt." The number of foreign tourists visiting Istanbul declined to 9.2 million in 2016, a 26 percent decrease compared to 2015.

Other destinations in Turkey

Beach vacations and Blue Cruises, particularly for Turkish delights and visitors from Western Europe, are also central to the Turkish tourism industry. Most beach resorts are located along the southwestern and southern coast, called the Turkish Riviera, especially along the Mediterranean coast near Antalya. Antalya is also accepted as the tourism capital of Turkey. Major resort towns include Bodrum, Fethiye, Marmaris, Kuşadası, Çeşme, Didim and Alanya. Also Turkey has been chosen second in the world in 2015 with its 436 blue-flagged beaches, according to the Chamber of Shipping.

Lots of cultural attractions elsewhere in the country include the sites of Ephesus, Troy, Pergamon, House of the Virgin Mary, Pamukkale, Hierapolis, Trabzon (where one of the oldest monasteries is the Sümela Monastery), Konya (where the poet Rumi had spent most of his life), Didyma, Church of Antioch, ancient pontic capital and king rock tombs with its acropolis in Amasya, religious places in Mardin (such as Deyrülzafarân Monastery), and the ruined cities and landscapes of Cappadocia.

Diyarbakır is also an important historic city, although tourism is on a relatively small level due to waning armed conflicts.

Ankara has an historic old town, and although it is not exactly a tourist city, is usually a stop for travelers who go to Cappadocia. The city enjoys an excellent cultural life too, and has several museums. The Anıtkabir is also in Ankara. It is the mausoleum of Atatürk, the founder of the Republic of Turkey.

Gallipoli and Anzac Cove - a small cove on the Gallipoli peninsula, which became known as the site of World War I landing of the ANZAC (Australian and New Zealand Army Corps) on 25 April 1915. Following the landing at Anzac Cove, the beach became the main base for the Australian and New Zealand troops for the eight months of the Gallipoli campaign.

Development of tourism

Foreign tourist arrivals increased substantially in Turkey between 2000 and 2005, from 8 million to 21.2 million, which made Turkey a top-10 destination in the world for foreign visitors. 2005 revenues were US$17.5 billion which also made Turkey one of the top-10 biggest revenue owners in the world. In 2011, Turkey ranked as the 6th most popular tourist destination in the world and 4th in Europe, according to UNWTO World Tourism barometer. See World Tourism rankings. At its height in 2014, Turkey attracted around 42 million foreign tourists, still ranking as the 6th most popular tourist destination in the world. In 2016, only around 25 million people visited Turkey.

Challenges in tourism industry

During the 1990s, the PKK tried to damage the Turkish tourism industry by bombing hotels. Kidnappings of foreign tourists were also reported in this period. An academic article published in 2011 in the British peer-reviewed economics journal Applied Economics, suggested there is strong econometric evidence that attacks by the PKK have had a negative impact on Turkish tourism.

Due to the recent flare in Turkey- PKK conflict, nine countries, among them Russia and Germany, have issued travel advisories. Seven other countries, New Zealand, Australia, Italy, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Poland and Canada, discouraged their citizens to visit the eastern part of Turkey. Some countries have also issued advisories concerning public transportation within metropolitan cities throughout Turkey. Germany and Russia have discouraged their citizens to visit places near the border.

From 2015, tourism to Turkey entered a steep decline. Following an ISIL attack, the British Foreign Office highlighted a heightened threat of attacks but did not advise against travel to Turkey, as the vast majority of Turkey remained "perfectly safe" to visit. On 3 September 2015, due to the recent violence concerning the Turkey-Islamic State conflict, the United States State Department released an advisory about the ongoing violence in Turkey. In the advisory, the State Department notes that militants have conducted attacks on U.S. interests in the country and that there's a potential for recurring violence. On 9 April 2016, due to additional "credible threats" of violence, the United States released a warning for its citizens to refrain from visiting popular tourist areas such as Antalya and Istanbul.

2016 is described as the second year of huge losses on both visitor numbers and income, a "year of devastating losses", with Turkish tourism businesses stating that they "cannot remember a worse time in the sector". The reason for the disastrous fall in tourism is attributed to a coup attempt, political tension with Russia, and terrorist attacks, and to the country's image according to Faruk Şen (head of the Turkish European Foundation for Education and Scientific Studies). "German tourists are not afraid of bombs; if fewer German tourists are now coming to Turkey, that is because of the country’s image. In Germany, if you say “I’m going to Turkey, this is now perceived meaning ‘I’m going to a dictator’s country.'" says Şen. In the aftermath of the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt, the United States State Department prohibited U.S. airline carriers from flying to or from Turkey. The U.S. Embassy in Turkey stated that the security at Istanbul's Atatürk airport is "significantly diminished" and the State Department advised U.S. citizens to reconsider travel to Turkey, and warned of threats of terrorism.

In early 2017, the Turkish government urged Turkish citizens living abroad to take their vacations in Turkey, attempting to revive the struggling tourism sector of an economy that went into contraction from late 2016.

Foreign visitor arrivals

Total number of tourists in Turkey in 2015 and 2016 were from the following countries of nationality: