Turkey expects to restart domestic tourism by this month end
According to a survey by International MICE and Wedding Forum (IMWF), Turkey will be a tourism destination that will achieve the fastest recovery among tourism destinations following the coronavirus pandemic.
The travel industry of the country which accounts for around 10% of global gross domestic product (GDP), has borne the brunt of the damage wrought by lockdowns to contain the coronavirus as nations sealed borders and planes were grounded.
Turkey is hoping to revive tourism in the coming weeks with a strict plan, but the number of visitors and revenues will drop in the new normal and have an impact on the economy amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Turkey expects to restart domestic tourism in late May and international tourism after mid-June, culture and tourism minister of Turkey Mehmet Nuri Ersoy said in a statement.
IMWF survey polled 822 firms and 1,468 tourism professionals in 45 countries, including Germany, the United States, Australia, Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Spain, Italy and Russia, looking to bring forth a general opinion of the relevant segment decision-makers and the industry about the aftermath of the pandemic.
The survey revealed that 59% of the participants think it will take time for customers to travel abroad for events following the pandemic.
Turkey has started a detailed certification program for hotels over the coronavirus outbreak. The ministry recently issued a hygiene notice to inform hotels about COVID-19 measures, such as social distancing and hygiene rules.
Ankara had initially stopped all international flights on March 27 to help curb the spread of the coronavirus, while domestic flights were suspended on May 1.
In the meantime, Turkey has started to carry out telephone diplomacy with 70 countries to inform them about the country's health infrastructure under the pandemic, Ersoy said Sunday.
Turkey in a certification system detailed that a country is a safe place for tourism, regarding measures against COVID-19, said Ersoy in a written statement.
The country's Culture and Tourism Ministry launched a "healthy tourism certification" project to ensure the fulfillment of high health and hygiene standards at airlines, airports and other transportation facilities, accommodations and food venues, the ministry had said earlier.
For its health tourism and in order to make up for some of the losses, Turkey will start accepting foreign patients next week from 31 countries, such as Greece, Russia, Germany, Britain, the Netherlands and Pakistan. Only COVID-19 negative individuals will be accepted in the health facilities of Turkey.
In recent years, Turkey has become a destination for health tourism, attracting over 1 million foreign patients in 2018.
