According to the statistics, the number of Russian visitors in Turkey has dropped by 30 percent. Experts forecast that the Turkish economy will suffer a cost of $ 2.5 billion. 20,000 people are also expected to lose their jobs in the Mediterranean province of Antalya.
Yusuf Hucisuleyman, the President of Union of Mediterranean Hotel Owners, said that Antalya has seen 450,000 fewer visitors already this year. He further said that the figure was likely to increase to 1 million by the end of the season.
According to Hucisuleyman, it is hoped that things will soon normalize after offering attractive prices to local tourists. Hucisuleyman also explained that employment opportunities will go down by 10 percent due to the decline in the number of tourists visiting the region. He also said the 189,000 tourism related current jobs might reduce by a whopping 18,000 to 20,000.
The Chairman of Turkish Association of Travel Agents (TURSAB) Basaran Ulusoy said that although Russian tourists had reduced, the number of American, British and German visitors increased. He was, however, quick to point out that the situation hadn't been caused by Turkey, but by Russia.
Ulusoy also said that other countries depict Turkey as a war zone simply because the country is next to Syria. He said that is very far from the truth because Turkey's closest province to Syria is Sanliurfa, but the said countries have continued to report that war plagues Istanbul.
Muhammet Emin, a director of Rawda Hotels Turkey said that as a result of a reduction in the number of visitors, hotel prices have continued to rise.
