SA tourism roadshow to target Turkish travel trade

JOHANNESBURG – South Africa's national tourism agency is set to conduct a roadshow for the first time in Istanbul, Turkey, to create platforms for access to that market, it said on Thursday.

The January 30 roadshow will provide 11 operators, including small, medium and micro-enterprises, an opportunity to engage with approximately 50 specially selected Middle East and Turkish travel trade companies, South African Tourism said in a statement.

It will the 23rd East Mediterranean International Tourism & Travel exhibition in Instabul, at which SA Tourism and trade partner will participate.

"Turkey is a strategically important market to SA Tourism as it is a springboard to the rest of the Middle East, India, and South East Asia region," SA Tourism said.

Factors that make South Africa an attractive destination for Turkish visitors include the fact that there are no visa requirements for travellers from both ends, and for Turkish tourists there is favourable airlift, said Sthembiso Dlamini, SA Tourism’s chief operating officer.

"This means there are direct flights from Turkey to South Africa with Turkish Airlines coupled with a sufficient number of frequencies offered by other airlines," Dlamini said.

"This has led to 12 139 Turkish tourist arrivals between January and October 2018, a 2.4 percent increase from the previous year."

Studies show that Turkish families visit South Africa for the culture, scenic beauty, beaches and safaris, while young tourists tend to be drawn by action and adventure tours.

Halaal tourism is also a factor. Since most Turkish travellers are Muslim, South Africa is well positioned to cater to their needs through a wide array of halaal restaurants and eateries across all nine provinces.

South Africa was ranked among the top 10 most Muslim-friendly travel destinations for 2018 by the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation in the annual MasterCard-Crescent Rating Global Muslim Travel Index.

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Turkey's tourism income totals $29.5B in 2018

By Muhammed Ali Gurtas

ANKARA 

Turkey's tourism income totaled $29.5 billion in 2018, the country's statistical authority announced on Thursday. 

The annual tourism revenue surged 12.3 percent last year, up from $26.3 billion in the previous year, TurkStat reported.

"While 81.8 percent of this income [excluding GSM roaming and marina service expenditures] was obtained from foreign visitors, 18.2 percent was obtained from citizens resident abroad," TurkStat said.

"In this year, while individual expenditures constituted $22.5 billion of the total tourism income, $6.9 billion of tourism income was obtained by package tour expenditures," it said.

Turkey welcomed 45.6 million visitors in 2018, marking a 18.1 percent hike from the previous year -- 85.4 percent foreign and 14.6 percent representing Turkish citizens residing abroad.

According to the official data, average expenditure per capita was $647 in 2018, as foreigners spent $617 per capita and Turkish citizens spent $801 per capita.

TurkStat said visitors spent most for food and beverage in 2018 -- foreigners with around $4.38 billion and Turkish visitors with $1.55 billion.

Foreigners spent some $2.7 billion on clothes and shoes, and $966 million on souvenirs in addition to nearly $77 million on carpets and rugs. 

The primary visiting purpose of foreigners was "travel, entertainment, sports and cultural activities" with 60.5 percent, as their top accommodation choice was hotel/motel/pension with over 36 million overnights.

The primary travel reason of Turkish visitors residing abroad was “visiting relatives and friends” with 50.4 percent, while they mostly preferred private houses during their trips in Turkey with more than 17 million overnights.

Official figures also showed that the country's tourism expenditure -- which is the expenditure of the Turkish citizens resident in Turkey and visited abroad -- fell to some $4.9 billion last year, declining by 4.7 percent on a yearly basis.  

"In 2018, number of Turkish citizens visited abroad decreased by 5.7 percent compared to previous year and reached 8.38 million.

"Average expenditure was $584 per capita," the institute said.

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The 6th Interdisciplinary Tourism Research Conference to be held in Cappadocia, Turkey

Organised by the journal ANATOLIA, the 6th Interdisciplinary Tourism Research Conference will take place 2 - 7 October 2018 in Cappadocia, Turkey. 

The conference aims particularly to emphasize the interdisciplinary nature of tourism, hospitality and leisure research and attracts submissions in two categories: First, it encourages those faculty members and/or graduate students studying in other fields, but have research interests on tourism. Second, for those contributors with a background in tourism, the paper should be written by at least two multiple authors and each author represents a different discipline.

Invited speakers 

The list of our guest speakers is diverse in their affiliations, gender, and fields of expertise:

• Tej Vir Singh, Centre for Tourism Research & Development, India 
• Haiyan Song, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, SAR China
• Marion Joppe, University of Guelph, Canada
• Chris Cooper, Leeds Beckett University, UK

Tej Vir Singh Recognition Award 

This year’s award is dedicated to Professor Tej Vir Singh of the Centre for Tourism Research & Development, India, in recognition of his lifelong contribution and social role played to the institutionalisation of tourism studies, both nationally and internationally, from an interdisciplinary perspective.

Pre-conference seminars: 

• Antonia Correia – University of Algarve & Universidade Europeia, Portugal
• Maheshvari Naidu – University of KwaZulu–Natal, South Africa
• Ana Isabel Rodrigues – Polytechnic Institute of Beja, Portugal
• Husseini Olya – Oxford Brookes University, UK 

For more information about the conference, visit anatoliajournal.com/interdisciplinary


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Incirliin Cave proving popular among tourists in southwestern Turkey

The ancient Incirliin Cave located in southwestern Turkey's Muğla province continues to be a popular attraction for tourists.

The 345-meter-long cave, which is located in Milas district's Gökçeler Canyon and estimated to be around 8,000 years old, has been declared both a first degree archeological and natural site by Muğla's Cultural and Natural Heritage Preservation Board.

Upon entering the cave, visitors are greeted by huge stalactites and stalagmites and enjoy cooler temperatures, which can reach as low as 17 degrees Celsius even on the hottest days. The cooler temperatures also make the cave a perfect habitat that bat colony said to have made its home there.

Speaking to Anadolu Agency (AA), District Governor of Milas Eren Arslan said the cave was first opened to visitors after lightening equipment and walkways were installed in 2016 to ensure visitors' safety.

Remarking that the region's beaches also make it a popular tourist destination, Arslan said both the cave and the canyon have a very different sort of tourism potential. The canyon is home to vibrant wildlife and various types of trees and other flora. Confident in the area's potential, Arslan said the spot is sure to grow with tourism businesses.

"Every year we get 20,000 local and foreign tourists. So far 7,000 tourists have visited in 2018. This number is increasing every year," he said.

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