Shout out to Chinese tourists and bring them to romantic Turkey

Xinhua News Agency, Ankara, January 17th: "I want to take you to romantic Turkey", this lyrics has made many people yearn for Turkey, and the beauty of Turkey has never disappointed Chinese tourists. As China resumes its citizens' outbound tourism in an orderly manner, Turkish tourism agencies and practitioners are eagerly looking forward to the return of Chinese tourists.

Turkish Deputy Minister of Culture and Tourism Ozgul Ozkan Yavuz recently said that Turkey is ready to welcome Chinese tourists with open arms. He said that referring to the number of tourists before the epidemic, Turkey is confident that it will welcome more tourists in the short term.

On the evening of December 22, 2022, tourists take a boat ride on the Bosporus Strait in Istanbul, Turkey. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Sha Dati

In 2019, Turkey received more than 420,000 Chinese tourists. In 2022, the Turkish tourism market will gradually pick up. Official statistics show that in the first 11 months of 2022, Turkey received about 42.2 million foreign tourists, a year-on-year increase of 84.77%.

"We look forward to the return of Chinese tourists to Turkey, and expect the number of Chinese tourists we receive to return to pre-epidemic levels by the second half of this year," Ivan Kasler, general manager of Turkish Blueberry Travel Agency, told Xinhua recently.

"Chinese tourists like the Sea of Marmara, and even transit passengers want to see the Sea of Marmara before leaving Istanbul." Serhan Kecihan, a staff member of the Blueberry Travel Agency, said that colleagues are planning how to better welcome China Tourists, arrange new tourism projects and destinations, especially design some unique short-distance travel routes, including newly restored and newly opened coastal tourist attractions, to meet the different needs of Chinese tourists.

This is the landform of the caves in Cappadocia, Turkey, taken from the air on August 20, 2016. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter He Canling

Cappadocia in central Turkey has a unique landform and landscape, and hot air balloon sightseeing is one of the popular tourism projects, which is very popular among Chinese tourists. Mohammad Dinler, who runs a local hot air balloon company, told reporters that considering the importance Chinese tourists attach to travel comfort, they have begun to develop new tourism projects for Chinese tourists. "We plan to introduce a service similar to 'business class', providing a smaller size hot air balloon basket that can accommodate 16 to 20 passengers to improve comfort."

Nevsehir University in Turkey in the Cappadocia region has opened a Chinese language and literature major in recent years, which can provide Chinese service talents for the local tourism industry.

This is the interior view of the Spice Bazaar taken on April 5, 2022 in Istanbul, Turkey. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Sha Dati

Aiden, who runs a hotel in Istanbul, said that the news of China's orderly resumption of outbound tourism is encouraging. "Chinese tourists appreciate Istanbul's culture and cuisine. This is why I am optimistic about 2023."