The Coronavirus pandemic has had its effect on the whole world of tourism, with some countries suffering more than others due to their high dependency on the sector. One of these countries is Turkey, a historically prominent travel destination.
Nevertheless, the situation is gradually improving, and the country, as well as its popular resort province Antalya, is slowly gaining back the lost momentum on the market.
3 Million Mark Reached
According to the president of Antalya’s tourism group, Recep Yavuz, around three million tourists have arrived in Antalya since the beginning of 2020. This represents more than 20% of the entire tourist flow to Turkey (13-14 million).
Moreover, on October 10, a record 45.5 thousand tourists from 18 countries arrived in Antalya. This day became the busiest tourist day of the month. Thus said, the popular resort closed the summer season with a bang.
Russians and Germans Arriving in Masses
A large part of the masses of tourists arrived from several countries. Russia and Ukraine in particular made a significant contribution. About one in two tourists in the province is from one of the two countries. Half a million tourists arrived from Ukraine, while 50 thousand Belarussians came to the province as well, despite the unrest in their country.
Another important source market for Turkey and Antalya is Germany. Around 5000 thousand German tourists travel to the province every day.
Moreover, after Antalya was removed from the list of travel warnings, other Germans may have been encouraged to travel here. Everyday 20 planes arrive from Germany directly to Antalya and they are expected to come until mid-November.
Not Everyone Satisfied
However, despite the many tourists arriving in the country, not everyone is satisfied with the situation in the resort. People have been complaining about temperature measurement at every step, limited breakfast offer as well as the contradictory rules regarding face masks.
Thus said, the experience was probably not the best for every visitor. Nevertheless, Turkey and Antalya are regaining their spot on the tourist map gradually and will be looking to attempting to return back to their normalcy in the coming months.