Turkish tourism players happy over extended Eid holidays, expect major windfall

Tuesday, April 30, 2019

The Eid al-Fitr holiday, which lasts for nine days, is expected to bring cheer to the tourism sector in Turkey. Tourism players expect approximately two million local tourists to flood the resorts, generating a turnover of three billion Turkish Liras ($500 million).

The holiday was supposed to officially start on June 4 and end on June 6. But Turkish authorities recently issued a circular announcing that July 3 (Monday) and July 7 (Friday) would also be holidays, effectively creating a nine-day public holiday, including the two weekends.

“The announcement of the extension of the Eid al-Fitr holiday to nine days about a month and a half ago has made us very happy. In the past, the extension of such holiday times used to be announced about one week [prior to the holiday time]. But this time it was declared so early, will come in handy for customers wanting to buy cheap vacations and for tourism agencies aiming to earn a higher revenue,” said Tolga Gencer, who heads the Turkish Travel Agencies in the Aegean region.

“So, from now on as well, we want such holiday dates to be planned at the beginning of the year. In the recent periods, all sectors have been affected from the [local] election environment, but the elections coming to an end has affected [people’s] holiday plans positively. And this will create an import turnover for the [tourism] agencies. We are expecting approximately two million tourists to take a holiday during Eid al-Fitr, which corresponds to a three billion Turkish Lira turnover,” said Gencer.

Gencer said that all-inclusive hotels in the Aegean province of Muğla and the Mediterranean province of Antalya were hotspots for many people booking their spots earlier for the upcoming Eid al-Fitr holiday.

“There is an increase in bookings in hotels in Bodrum, Marmaris, Fethiye [all districts of Muğla province], Lara [district in Antalya] and Antalya. If the holiday had been limited to only three to four days, hotels in Kuşadası [district in the Aegean province of Aydın] and Çeşme [district in the Aegean province of İzmir] would anyway be booked fully. But the extension of the holiday period increased the demand for tourism spots that are more far away,” he said.

The occupancy rate of many hotels, hostels and mountain hotels in the Black Sea province has already hit 90 percent. Hoteliers in the south-eastern province of Mardin are also happy with the bookings for the upcoming Eid al-Fitr. The 10,000-bed capacity in hotels in the province has already been booked, according to Mardin Tourism and Hoteliers Association (MARTOD) President Özgür Azad Güngör.

« Back to Page

• Russia’s war in Ukraine affecting Turkish tourism businesses

• Turkish tourism suffers setback due to Russia-Ukraine war

• Cancelations of trips by the Ukrainians and Russians pose disaster for Turkish tourism

• Turkish Tourism Ministry promises support for the tourism sector

• Turkish tourism witnesses hope after waning of the pandemic