Turkey warmly welcomes Russians - Today's Zaman

R04-19-03-08.qxd 16.03.2008 21:38 Page 104 TODAY’S TOURISMMARCH 19-22, 2008AGENDATourýsm operators seeklonger výsa terms for Russýans‘The Foreign Ministry does not currently require a visa for Russian visitors for periodsup to two months. We will lobby the ministry to increase this no-visa durationto three or four months,’ says AKTOB Chairman Sururi ÇorabatýrTourism operators in Antalya, the primarydestination in Turkey for tourists from theRussian Federation, have asked theForeign Ministry to issue visas for longer periodsto facilitate a longer stay by tourists.The Mediterranean Tourism Hoteliers andOperators Union (AKTOB) has applied to the ForeignMinistry for a review of visa terms. Pointing out that avisa is not required for short stays in Turkey for citizensof the Russian Federation, AKTOB head SururiÇorabatýr said: “The Foreign Ministry does notAKTOB ChairmanSururi Çorabatýrcurrently require a visa for Russian visitors for periodsup to two months. We will lobby the ministry toincrease this no-visa duration to three or four months.”The Turkish tourism sector saw significant profitsin 2007 as tourist numbers increased, and as inprevious years, Antalya in particular was the leadingdestination for tourists. Russian tourists showedincreased interest in this city that was previouslyviewed as only a domestic holiday location. Inresponse to their interest, the tourism operators inthe city decided to lobby for a visa extension.As seen in the breakdown of nationalities oftourists arriving in Antalya last year, the Russiansegment rose to 25 percent. This rate of increase, if itcontinues, will see Germans fall from the top of thelist, where they have placed since the 1980s. Antalyaalone hosted 1.8 million Russian tourists last year.Çorabatýr spoke to Today’s Tourism, statingthat Antalya’s balmy climate and the short distancebetween countries appeal to Russian tourists andthat competitive prices and high quality service areamong other reasons for their choice. He assertedthat the tourism facilities in Antalya were new andwere on par with world standards. “Antalya livesup to their expectations,” he said.“The number of Russian citizens with a passport isincreasing each day. Given the economic developmentin this country, it is obvious that more and moreRussians will opt for Antalya for their vacations.Indeed, in the Russian Federation, the word holiday isnow associated with Antalya before Turkey,” he said.This can be substantiated by the figures, althoughfor now their interest is restricted to summer. In May,June, July and August, Russians prefer the 640kilometer coastal zone of Antalya, though the wintermonths see a drop in Russian visitors. After October,they tend to prefer Egypt, which they often cite aswarmer than Antalya. Antalya’s tourism operatorssay however that this perception is wrong, notingthat even in winter the difference in temperaturesbetween Egypt and Antalya is only three or fourdegrees. They argue that Antalya can be a majorholiday destination even in the off-season, a claimvalidated by meteorological figures. According toclimate records, more than 300 days a year are sunnyin Antalya, where the sun continues to warm thecrystal coast even in winter. Antalya Today’s TourismGermans’ rush in earlyreservations race mayshut out Russianscontýnued from page 1In an exclusive interview withToday’s Tourism, Güner noted thatALTÝD does its best to participate inany and all domestic and foreigntourism fairs in order to promoteAlanya. These efforts are paying off asthe number of European visitors in2008 is expected to increase by 15percent over last year, according to her.Based on the turnout at fairs theyattended, Güner said that Germans,who show particular interest in theAlanya, Side, Lara and Belek regionsof Antalya, the British, the Belgiansand the French follow the Germans interms of interest in Turkey.Noting that they are “very contentwith the high demand,” Güner on theother hand underlined that this may bringalong with it a “double season” problemstemming from excessive demand.Güner also stressed that ALTÝDbegan work earlier this year onAlanya’s promotion for the 2008tourism year. She noted that as ALTÝD,they have attended fairs in countriessuch as the Netherlands, Norway,Austria, Finland, Slovakia, Denmark,Gülçin GünerLatvia and the Czech Republic so far.“We received very positivereactions during the fairs we attended,and we believe that attending fairspromotes interest in Alanya andincreases the number of reservationsthere,” she added. Güner alsocommented on the impact the TurkishArmed Forces’ (TSK) recent groundoperation into northern Iraq has hadon tourism. Saying that the operationdid not significantly affect tourism, shesaid the fact that the operation endedclose to the start of the tourism seasonwas the most important reason for this.Thermal Resort Oruçoðluvoted best spa hotelThermal Resort Oruçoðlu was awarded theThermal and Medical Spa of the Year prize inthe 2007 Spa Achievement Awards during Turkey’s1st National Spa and Wellness Congress,sponsored by the Culture and Tourism Ministry.The hotel, which had been previously selected bySabah and Hürriyet dailies as the best thermal and spahotel, operates within the thermal tourism categoryand is the first five-star thermal hotel in Turkey.Working on a half-board system, the hotel has 300rooms and 800 beds. The hotel was the first tointroduce the spa concept to Turkey 15 years ago,and its experience has been crowned with this award.The hotel’s Spa and Wellness Center offershealth, youth and beauty services includingoxygenated and normal dermal care, mud bath,aroma therapy, a “Cleopatra” milk bath, face lift care,masks, hair care, total or local cellulite massages,therapeutic massage, underwater massage, stonetherapy, fasting cures, solarium, Turkish bath, vaporbath, private family baths with whirlpool bath andsauna as well as a well-equipped physiotherapy andrehabilitation center that offers complete services undersupervision of physicians and physiotherapy experts.This center also contains a bioresonance antismokingtherapy unit that helps smokers quit. Thistherapy unit, a first for Afyon, offers successfulresults for smokers really determined to break thehabit. In addition, the laboratory in the spa centeroffers blood analysis to determine cholesterol,triglyceride, etc., levels. In the Spa and WellnessCenter, mineral bone density can be measured andearly diagnosis of osteoporosis can be made.Furthermore, body analysis can be performed andmuscle fat ratios can be calculated.The hotel has made a physiotherapy deal withKocatepe University in Afyon and under thisagreement costs for physiotherapy and rehabilitationcan be refunded under the insurance coverage ofSocial Insurance for the Self-Employed (BAÐ-KUR), the Social Security Authority (SSK), and thePension Fund (Emekli Sandýðý).The hotel has recently made a similar deal withAGIS, a major Dutch insurance company. Thus,those under AGIS insurance coverage will be able toget refunds for their accommodation and resortservices if their treatment is recommended by arheumatism expert. Afyonkarahisar Today’s Tourism