In his written statement, the President of the Confederation of Turkish Tradesmen and Craftsmen (TESK), Bendevi Palandöken, stated that tourism in Turkey should be extended not only to the summer months, but also to other fields such as health, culture and gastronomy, which have higher foreign exchange earnings.
Pointing out that foreign tourists' average expenditure per person on a dollar basis has decreased, Palandöken said, "Although the number of tourists increased, a tourist who spent 1,028 dollars in 2021 spent 901 dollars last year. The most important reason for this decrease in per capita expenditures is that tourists stick to a fixed point such as a hotel and do not travel enough. Here, tourism agencies have a big role to play. We must abandon the all-inclusive system that reduces tourism to a single area and does not exclude tourists from hotels. Thus, we should contribute to the country's economy by increasing the share of our tradesmen and craftsmen from tourism income."
"THIS SITUATION IS AN OBSTACLE TO GASTRONOMY TOURISM"
Stating that the all-inclusive system is a major obstacle to the development of gastronomic tourism, Palandöken said, "Now tourists want to experience not only the historical and natural beauties of the countries they travel to, but also the taste. In Turkish cuisine, each region has a different flavor. Tourists going to the Black Sea and tourists going to the Southeast have the chance to taste very different flavors. By using this diversity very well, we can give a new impetus to tourism."
Palandoken stated that 876 thousand 521 people came to the country last year for health tourism, and 1 billion 600 million dollars of foreign exchange income was obtained from these visits.
Emphasizing that tourists who come to Turkey for all kinds of operations such as hair transplant, cataract surgery, dental operations, rheumatism treatments, cupping and leech treatments, leave at least twice as much foreign currency as the others.
"Our natural assets such as our thermal springs, healing waters, plateaus, mountain air and forest areas should be evaluated more with health tourism," Palandöken added.