ALANYA Municipality and the President of the Alanya Tourism Promotion Foundation (ALTAV) Adem Murat Yücel met for breakfast with incoming agency representatives who bring tourists to Alanya. The meeting, where the season evaluation, 2018 data, and the steps to be taken were consulted, was attended by the President of the Alanya Tourist Operators Association (ALTİD) and Member of the Board of Directors of the Turkish Hotel Association (TÜROFED) Burhan Sili, the President of the Turkish Travel Agencies Association (TÜRSAB) Alanya Regional Executive Board (BYK) Suat Çavuşoğlu, ALTAV Vice President Mehmet Dahaoğlu, the Honorary Consul of Latvia Nurkan Şaşmaz, and agency representatives.
“2017 WAS REJOICING IN TERMS OF THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE”
Speaking at the meeting, Alanya Municipality and ALTAV President Yücel said the following: “Following the major difficulties experienced in Turkish tourism last year (2016), the 2017 tourism season was encouraging in terms of the number of people arriving. While the number of passengers at Antalya and Gazipaşa-Alanya airports remained at 6.5 million in 2016, as of October 2017, we have reached the figure of 10 million passengers. This increase is spreading to Alanya at the same rate. Alanya constitutes about 10-12 percent of Turkey in terms of bed capacity. We are a region that holds 30 percent of Antalya's capacity. Accordingly, we are receiving guests in Alanya at these rates. Another advantage of Alanya compared to Antalya and other regions is that it receives intense demand from regions such as Eastern Europe and Scandinavia. This situation is also reflected positively on our occupancy rates.”
“2018 WILL BE BETTER”
As a result of the meetings we have held with tour operators and agencies, we are receiving information that the number of tourists from regions we consider to be Russia and Russian-speaking countries will not fall below 2017 levels. We also see that there will be increases in the UK and Eastern European markets within the European market, excluding Central Europe. This information means that we will not fall below 2017 levels in terms of both tourist numbers and profitability. In other words, unless an extraordinary situation arises, we will have a better year in 2018. We have expectations from the Central Europe, UK, Northern Europe, Eastern Europe, Russia, and Iran markets. We also have expectations and ongoing studies regarding market diversification, increasing source markets, and increasing product variety, which the Government is particularly emphasizing today. Of course, these are not things that will happen overnight in the short term. For example, there is no concentrated demand from the Chinese, Indian, and Arab markets for the coastal areas. However, the synergy created by the guests coming from these markets will certainly be to the benefit of our region. Turkey's 2023 tourism planning includes targets of 50 million tourists and 50 billion dollars in revenue.
“THE TOURISM SECTOR HAS DEMANDS”
The Turkey Tourism Council was held in Ankara at the beginning of November. Reports were presented regarding the actions that ministries and authorities related to Turkish tourism must take. There are demands on many issues, such as the transition of Turkish tourism from a destination law to a union law, the training of personnel to be employed in tourism, and the ability to shape the law concerning the Ministry of Labour and Social Security toward the profession, and we expect these to be finalized as soon as possible. We have problems regarding the excess supply of beds, and these are still continuing. Investments have decreased to a serious level compared to the past. On one hand, it is important for new investments to be directed toward alternative tourism diversities. On the other hand, promotion is also very important, but on-site promotion is much more important. The negative impact created for us as a result of any tourist coming here experiencing negative incidents is much greater. In this sense, all sectors must be much more sensitive in their approach to tourists. It is valuable for all of us that a tourist feels safe in the bazaar and on the street. In this regard, as the municipality, we will continue to take the necessary precautions, just as we have done until today.
“QUALITY UNDERSTANDING MUST BE PRESERVED”
“As a holiday destination with the characteristic of tourism being intertwined with city life and the public, we believe in the necessity of prioritizing and maintaining an integrated approach in Alanya during this process to ensure the preservation of a total quality understanding within the city, the continuation of competition and development towards guest satisfaction and quality, the strengthening and promotion of alternative tourism opportunities, and the continuity in areas such as guest profiles and trends, market dynamics, investment efficiency, the place and composition of new products, the training of qualified personnel, and the participation of suppliers.”
“EFFORTS ARE BEING MADE TO WIN GERMANY”
Stating that the problems began in 2015 and providing general evaluations, ALTİD President and TÜROFED Board Member Burhan Sili also noted the following: “With the decline of Russian tourists landing in Antalya from 3.5 million to 2.8 million, there was a decrease in our profitability. The year 2016 is not a year worth discussing in terms of tourism anyway. It was a year in which we incurred losses, especially due to the fact that almost no Russian tourists arrived and because of the discounts made by accommodation operators for the European market. In parallel to this, we received support regarding credit and tax deferrals. There is a significant increase in terms of passenger numbers at Gazipaşa-Alanya Airport. However, this increase has not fully reflected in our revenues. As the agency representatives have also expressed, according to the information we have received, there are increases particularly in the Eastern European market, the United Kingdom, and to a lesser extent, the Scandinavian market. We forecast that figures in Russia and Russian-speaking countries will not fall below this year's (2017) numbers. In Germany, there is a renewed movement. We are receiving information to this effect in our meetings with senior executives from TUI and Thomas Cook. As a result, business is being conducted, and they are also willing to increase their operations in Türkiye. Unless there is an abnormality in the German market, efforts are being made to catch up with the 2016 figures.”
“COSTS MUST BE REDUCED”
There will be no full recovery before 2020. On one hand, work must be carried out not only in sea, sand, and sun tourism but also in alternative tourism sectors. The government and we, as tourism professionals, are working in this regard. Health, sports, and culture tourism stand out as our leading alternative tourism sectors. These products are extremely important in terms of both increasing Turkey's tourism quality, enabling it to market its product for a much longer period, and increasing the revenue obtained from tourism per capita. In this context, we, as the Alanya region accommodation sector, must take a position. We should evaluate our investments in this regard. Coastal tourism, whose profitability has decreased, is being sustained along with global difficulties. We must turn to practices aimed at reducing our costs without compromising service quality.
“AGENTS SHOULD FOCUS ON QUALITY, NOT LOW PRICES”
Agencies should be careful regarding the prices they receive from accommodation facilities. They should not encounter low quality while expecting cheapness. This business has a cost. Every business has its own reality, and if you encounter an implausible price in light of this reality, do not rely on it. Prices should not be obtained for a service where arriving guests might encounter negative situations. It is of great importance for tourism that our agents show sensitivity to this issue. I believe that contracts and regional managers have responsibilities in this regard.
“POLICE NUMBERS AT THE AIRPORT ARE INSUFFICIENT”
We are facing significant problems at Gazipaşa-Alanya Airport (GZP). One of these is the insufficient number of passport police. This airport has a capacity of 2.5 million passengers as a terminal building. However, as soon as two planes land one after another, large queues and long waiting times occur. The other major problem is experienced in the airport's parking area. This airport, which has the capacity to handle 6 aircraft per hour, is also experiencing service difficulties due to the density of private vehicles and tour buses.”
“PRE-BOOKINGS HAVE INCREASED BY 25 PERCENT”
TÜRSAB Alanya Regional Board President Çavuşoğlu stated: Turkish tourism has long held its place among the world's essentials. We have a capacity of 1 million 600 thousand tourist beds across Turkey. However, countries such as Portugal, Spain, Croatia, and Bulgaria have increased their prices by 40-50 percent. As a result of the situation Turkey was in, tour operators had shifted tourists to these countries, but recent positive developments have caused tour operators to turn toward Turkey once again. As of November, pre-reservations are trending 25 percent above last year.”