Demand for Turkey will grow among tourists from all but one country. This is how the head of the Mediterranean Association of Tourist Hoteliers and Operators (AKTOB) Kaan Cavaloglu, who voiced his forecast for 2023 at the meeting of the association, encouraged local tour operators in the Turkish media.
He reminded me that in 2022, two main markets for Turkey were lost – we are talking about Ukraine and Russia. However, in general, 2022 lived up to expectations. After all, Russian tourists returned and for most of the season successfully competed with the Germans for leadership in terms of volumes.
In 2023, according to Cavaloglu, Turkish tour operators “expect growth in all markets except Ukraine.” And they expect it to be a very good season. “We expect demand from Germany and England to continue to grow in 2023 as a result of the meetings we held at international travel fairs,” he added.
However, it was not without fears – as the Turkish expert stated, growth is possible only if “there is no crisis and other risks in the world.” In this case, Turkey “can surpass its competitors in the tourism sector and have a very good season,” Cavaloglu said.
He also added that among the global trends, the factors that disturb world tourism are the following: rising prices and the associated rising costs, inflationary pressure on consumers, as well as geopolitical tensions. According to him, in connection with these trends, Turkish tourism, in particular, is under stress.