Antalya preferred by Germans in early booking
Mediterranean Touristic Hoteliers and Operators Association President Kaan Kavaloğlu, has stated that for the first time in early booking sales in Germany, Turkey has surpassed Spain.
“We aim to see 4 million German tourists in Antalya this year. Therefore, this year, the Germans may surpass the Russians,” said Kavaloğlu, who is also Vice President of the Federation of Hoteliers of Turkey. The figures were formed in the bookings for the 2024 tourism season.
Pointing out that European tourists’ interest in Turkey has increased, Kavaloğlu said, “We were very happy that the Germans’ interest in Turkey was so intense for the first time. For the first time in early booking sales, Turkey was even ahead of Spain. 1.5 million Germans made early bookings in Antalya. Germany and the UK are going very fast in early booking.”
Stating that the early booking in the Russian market went a little slow due to the Russia-Ukraine war, Kavaloğlu noted that this situation brought the European market to the fore.
Kavaloğlu continued: “Our goal in Antalya is to exceed 17 million tourists. For the first time this year in Antalya, we aim for the number of German tourists to reach 4 million. Therefore, Germans may surpass Russians this year.
“If the Russia-Ukraine war ends, Russia will be in the first place as always. Ukraine was the third market exceeding 1 million people, but we lost Ukraine by almost 80 per cent as a market. England was our third market that exceeded 1 million people 2 years ago. Poland is the fourth market.”
Kavaloğlu said: “Polish interest in Turkey is increasing both in summer and winter.”
Stating that Scandinavian countries can also reach their old figures this year, he added: “Therefore, we can say that a good year is coming. As tourism organisations, we are always cautious. Because we have experienced three major crises in the last five years. Therefore, we are trying to diversify tourism, spread it over 12 months.”
Kavaloğlu also mentioned that they hosted Chinese tourists in Antalya and Istanbul last year thanks to the efforts of the Tourism Promotion and Development Agency.