The notes taken during the closed-door meeting held at the Alanya Tourism Promotion Foundation (ALTAV) on October 27, 2014, which was attended by Alanya Mayor Adem Murat Yücel along with agency and tour operator representatives, have been announced to the public. Members of the press, ALTAV management, and agency representatives gathered at a breakfast held at Konaktepe Restaurant.
ALTERNATIVE PROMOTION METHODS
Speaking at the breakfast, ALTAV Board Member Murat Çeviker stated that they have been participating by opening stands at world fairs for 14 years and that ALTAV is praised by promotion counselor offices. Emphasizing that promotion efforts are not limited to opening stands at fairs, Çeviker said, “We attach great importance to promotion through the press. For this reason, we host many members of the press from both within the country and from abroad in Alanya. In addition to this, we use alternative promotion methods by hosting beauty pageant models, film crews, and program producers in Alanya.”
“THE INTERNET HAS SURPASSED THE FAIR”
Stating that the number of tourists visiting Alanya every year has reached the 4 million mark without decreasing, Çeviker emphasized that these 4 million tourists make a great contribution to "on-site promotion," and that true promotion can be achieved by working hand in hand with tradesmen, the public, and tourism professionals, alongside all sectors that contribute to tourism. Explaining that they are working on a major project to prioritize internet platforms in terms of promotion, Çeviker said, “Internet sales are steadily increasing in global markets. Developments in internet platforms have now begun to surpass the promotions conducted at fairs. In this direction, as ALTAV, we are about to bring a very important internet panel infrastructure to Alanya.”
The notes taken during the closed-door press meeting held at ALTAV on October 27, 2014, which was attended by Alanya Mayor Yücel and representatives of agencies and tour operators, were announced as follows:
ENVIRONMENT
1. Inspection of hotels using well water
2. Network water inspection
3. Mosquito problem/ lack of spraying
4. Keeping the seas clean and the efficient operation of treatment plants
5. Street cleaning and garbage collection problem
6. City beautification (Painting road lane markings, painting building exteriors, marking and organizing pedestrian crossings outside the center)
Request for regulation, breaking of rocks, beautification, etc., at Mahmutlar Beach
Request for work to prevent potential epidemic diseases in hotels and general areas
Unsanitary storage and service of food and beverages on the 9th tour boats, dumping trash into the sea, waste discharge problem
TRAFFIC
10. Roads closing before the specified time during sports organizations, thereby causing disruptions to transfers, and the failure to provide alternative crossings
11. Insufficiency of bicycle lanes, harassment of cyclists
The nuisance caused by Mypet’s pets to pedestrians, Mypet terror
13. Agency problems regarding intra-city bus parking/unloading/loading and waiting points
14. Difficulty for buses to reach especially apart hotels due to incorrect parking and the narrowness of inner-city roads
The request for 15. İskele Caddesi to be open to tour buses at certain hours (Due to pick-up and drop-off problems…)
Thanks for the green wave on the 16th Ring Road
Availability of details regarding urban transportation (Bus numbers and routes, schedules, maps, etc.)
18 tour boats taking passengers over capacity
TRADESMAN
19. Aggressive tradesmen (Hustling, verbal harassment, physical and visual harassment, sitting in front of shops and harassing passersby on the sidewalk, catcalling, forcing customers to buy products, and scolding them when they do not buy)
20. The increase in the number of shops selling the same product, their being located side by side, even the absence of shops other than textile retailers in certain areas, and the products being counterfeit
AGENCY
21. Unauthorized individuals and organizations other than agencies conducting tour sales (Restaurant, receptionist, beach attendant, taxi driver, etc.)
Street agency terror (Agencies representing tour operators disparaging them, ignoring customer complaints, and even issuing threats, as well as organizing tours with personnel who lack the authority and knowledge)
23. Reviewing and adapting the criteria for opening travel agencies to the present day
24. Increase of safety measures for jeep safari and go-kart
PUBLIC ORDER
25. Increase in incidents of theft, assault, snatch-and-grab, rape, and harassment
26. Taxi driver terror (Providing false information to customers, not turning on the taximeter, fraud, selling tours, crowding in traffic, and blocking the road)
27. Complaints regarding hammam services, hygiene, and staff (Harassment, rape, cleaning problems, disease spreading issues, injury problems due to incorrect massage, etc.)
Problems regarding widespread drug sales and the sale of counterfeit and smuggled alcohol in 28 bars, discos, and boats
29. Maintenance and inspections of sports areas, parks, and open spaces (Youth using drugs in parks, children skipping school and sitting in parks, etc.)
Request for tourists to be warned not to wander through the bazaar in beachwear
31. Begging
REAL ESTATE
32. High shop prices and rents
33. The problem of local agencies and real estate agents renting licenses
34. 2. problem of short-term rentals/home hotels (Untaxed, unregulated operations, and lack of registration and security)
ACCOMMODATION AND TRAINING
Absence of 5-star hotels in the city center, low service quality in HD hotels
36. Quality decline resulting from the shortage of trained personnel in hotels, restaurants, etc. tourism enterprises, personnel training, vocational training
Providing staff with ‘What does the European tourist want’ training with the slogan ‘The tourist who leaves Alanya happy is the best promotion’
AIRPORT
Aircraft parking and vehicle parking problems, terminal smallness, security issues during passenger embarkation/disembarkation at Alanya-Gazipaşa Airport; the regulation of the area where the airline connects to the intercity road
ACTIVITY
The limited availability of activity and entertainment areas for children, and the demand for the establishment of amusement parks similar to Disneyland
In recent years, the young demographic coming to Alanya for entertainment tourism has shifted toward Mykonos Island. To attract the young population back to Alanya, work should be carried out to ensure that, in addition to promotional activities, world-famous singers (for example, Rihanna, Justin Bieber) perform concerts in Alanya.
TOURISM, PROMOTION
41. Alanya’s and Türkiye’s image problem
42. Focusing on alternative markets, organizing various festivals and events in Alanya