News 29
Turkey: Looking east in tourism
Long-regarded as an affordable getaway for European tourists
seeking the sun in the coastal resorts of Antalya, Bodrum or
Marmaris, Turkey is starting to draw rising numbers of visitors
from the Middle East region.
The Arab Spring has led to an upswing in tourists from the
Middle East choosing perceived safer destinations on the region's
periphery, and Turkey is proving to be one of the beneficiaries.
According to the UN World Tourism Organisation, international
tourist arrivals in the Middle East declined by 8.4% to 54.8m in
2011, but tourist flows from Egypt to Turkey are estimated to have
increased by 400% in 2011, according to Agence France-Presse.
The rise in tourists from the Middle East is also the result of
concerted efforts on the part of those involved in Turkey's tourism
sector. The Western Black Sea Promotional Tour organised by the
Turkish-Middle East Tourism Council in late April, for example,
invited tourism officials from the Gulf states of Saudi Arabia,
Qatar, Oman, Kuwait and the UAE to visit the provinces of Sinop and
Kastamonu in the north of the country.
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Source - http://www.oxfordbusinessgroup.com/
