Turkish tourism decided to fight for European tourists with proven methods: by setting hotel prices below competitive prices right away by 30%. The calculation is simple – to squeeze out their Mediterranean “rivals” – Spain, Greece and Italy – and catch up with the indicators of the pre-Covid 2019 in these markets. In other words, prices for Turkey should look more attractive to Europeans.
It is no coincidence that the Turks started a dumping race. Thus, according to the vice-president of the Turkish Hoteliers Federation (TÜROFED) Bulent Bulbuloglu, in 2022 it is unlikely that it will be possible to fill the void that the Russian tourist flow has created in the resorts. In this regard, it is necessary to fight to attract tourists from other popular destinations.
“We are trying to attract tourists from Spain and Italy at more competitive prices so that we can play on occupancy rather than profitability, reducing our bottom line. We made prices 30 percent lower than they are,” he explained.
In addition, the deputy head noted that the tourism sector has already achieved significant results in Europe and especially in the British market. This can be seen in the increase in capacity and filled flights to Antalya and Dalaman. Note that as a result of lower hotel prices, tourists see cheaper tours. “Additional flights were introduced from the UK, where tour operators increased their capacity. Central Europe is an important market for us. We are also trying to grow in the Netherlands, Belgium and Scandinavia,” the official said.
On the other hand, Turkish hoteliers still have doubts about the implementation of the plan. In this regard, the Vice President noted that the Mediterranean region and the main resort center of the country, Antalya, may again “fall short” of the established indicators, experiencing difficulties with the number of foreign tourists this year.
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