Turkey warmly welcomes Russians - Today's Zaman

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R06-19-03-08.qxd 16.03.2008 22:25 Page 106 TODAY’S TOURISMMARCH 19-22, 2008FOCUSEXPO 2015 would save Izmýr 25 yearsWill EXPO 2015 be in Ýzmir or Milan?Ýzmir seems to be more advantageousthan its rival, owing to its largerinvestment potential, and would attain its goalsset for 2040 25 years ahead of plan, in 2015, if itwins the bid. In such a case, the pearl of theAegean would attract a great number ofdomestic and foreign investors. Sixteen millionvisitors are expected to attend the EXPO 2015Ýzmir universal exhibition, for which thegovernment has allotted $1.3 billion.Ýzmir is entering the last stage of the race withMilan to host the EXPO event, also known as theworld’s history, culture and education Olympics. Ifit becomes the winner in the voting, to be held inthe Bureau of International Exhibitions (BIE)general meeting in Paris, Ýzmir will be able tomake 32 years of investments in seven years. Inother words, it will attain its 2040 goals 25 yearsahead of the expected time. For the city, EXPO willserve as a facilitator to achieve its goal to become acenter for fairs and conventions. Ýzmir will becomea renowned city in the field of health, owing to itsproposed theme for the EXPO: “New Ways for aBetter World and Health for Everyone.”The Ýzmir Metropolitan Municipality hasreported that the city has undertaken lobbyingactivities abroad to promote Ýzmir’s candidacy forEXPO 2015; municipality authorities expectremarkable growth in the city’s economy as a returnon the 15 million euro budget. Estimates underlinethat the project will increase the business capacity ofthe city; current predictions run from $15-25 billion.The expected number of visitors to the organizationfor a six-month period is 16-20 million. This impliesthat 40 million visits will be made during the event.The average daily number of visitors to the EXPOsite is expected to be around 300-360,000.The exhibition site in Ýnciraltý will include anamphitheater, an EXPO lake and tower, anoutdoor theater hall, 94 pavilions, 103restaurants, 30 stores and public areas and sitesreserved for general services and visitors.Seventy-six of the pavilions will be reserved forparticipant countries. The site will be arranged tohost 35,000 shows with 75,000 actors, actressesand artists. The number of people to be employedon-site for the six-month period is 1,200.The circulation in the number of visitorswill positively affect transportation,infrastructure and tourism activities in the city.Experts estimate that the city’s thermaltourism potential will attract a large number ofvisitors to Çeþme, Karaburun and Seferihisar.If it wins the bid for the EXPO 2015 event, Ýzmir, the pearl of the Aegean, is expected to attract at least 16 million domestic and foreign investors in one year.Amid the preparations for EXPO in the city, theMetropolitan Municipality is sponsoring a numberof projects; the municipality has made a totalinvestment of $1 billion in the last three years,paying careful attention to prestigious projects thatwill create synergy owing to EXPO. To this end, cityauthorities reserved a large area called “New Ýzmir”for skyscrapers, residences and business centers.With the adoption of new development plans thatwill dramatically change the outlook of the city bythe Municipal Assembly, the project will betransformed into the Manhattan of Ýzmir.On the project, Ýzmir Mayor Aziz Kocaoðlusays: “The tourism and service sectors areknown for their contribution to the generation ofemployment. This project will attract great sumsof investments to the city and resolve theunemployment problem. It will meet the city’sneed for skyscrapers. At least $10 billion ininvestments will be made. There will be nounemployment problem in Ýzmir. In the earlystages, about a dozen land owners showedinterest in making investments. There are a lot ofoptions and alternatives for this project. Thereare many who are interested in building hotels,business centers or malls. Our goal in the projectis to prepare a portfolio of investments forinvestors. Let us assume that an investor comesfrom China or the US to Ýzmir. He seeks to builda hotel, but there is no previously reserved areafor this purpose; he seeks to build a hospital butfinds no appropriate place to erect it. The samealso applies to industrial zones, fair area andconvention centers. There is no infrastructure orfoundation for this. We are trying to remove thisdeficit. We have determined the future of the cityvia the development plans. Investors will be ableto make sound decisions when they arrive in thecity, owing to the new development plan.”The EXPO 2015 Ýzmir Secretariat says thatthe total budget allocated to the organization is1.3 billion euros, whereas the total amount ofinvestments to be made in relation to EXPO willbe 461.1 million euros. Of the total figure, 75.6million euros will be reserved for investmentsrelated to urbanization and infrastructuralservices. A total of 14,000 people will work in thefair zone. Some of the infrastructure investmentsin relation to the EXPO event in Ýzmir in thefollowing seven years include a fast train projectthat will reduce the travel time between Ýzmirand Ankara to three hours, a new ferry dock inÝnciraltý, additional highways and the opening ofÇiðli airport to international arrivals.Reports indicate that a number of investorsare interested in projects and properties owned byÝþbank, Kula Mensucat, Petrol Ofisi, Turyað,Piyale and Tariþ to invest in. The first internationalgroup to announce its decision to invest in theregion was renowned British investment groupComberceli. The British company has beendoing preliminary work related to theconstruction of residences and shopping centers.PHOTOS TODAY’S ZAMANWhat is EXPO?EXPO events, which may be basicallydescribed as a cultural, historical andeducational Olympics of the world, call oncountries to share their visions andexperiences to make the world a betterplace. The goal of the EXPOs is not topromote the marketing of particularproducts of the countries but to encouragethem to present their cultural, historicaland national characteristics. This aims topromote expression of new ideas anddevelopment for a better world. The EXPOs,which have been held for 150 years,receive tens of millions of people in everyevent. The EXPO Universal Exhibition,which is held in a larger area than that ofthe Olympics and Soccer World Cups andlasts longer than these events, has beenheld in 63 different countries so far,attracting 800 million visitors.Delegates from 140countries will hold electionEXPO is the abbreviated form of “Exposition.”EXPOs that focus on international exhibitionsand universal exhibitions are called worldfairs. There are two other organizations: smalland large EXPOs. Ýzmir’s candidacy is for thegrand EXPO, held every five years. The ParisbasedBIE includes 140 member countries.The delegates from these countries vote topick a city to become an EXPO center. Ýzmirwill have to finish the race ahead of its rivalMilan in the voting session, scheduled to takeplace on March 31. That 22 million peoplevisited the EXPO event held in Aichi, Japan,and 70 million visitors are expected in theupcoming 2010 Shanghai EXPO gives a clueabout the magnitude and prominence of theevent. Experts note that Turkey will be ableto attract a greater number of visitors owingto its unique geography. The theme thatShanghai picked is “a better city, a betterlife.” The theme that Ýzmir has picked is acontinuation of that concept.Ýzmir’s competitor, Milan, held theGrand EXPO in 1906. Milan is expecting 25million visitors for EXPO 2015. The numberof visitors that Ýzmir plans to attract is farlarger than Milan’s estimates. In relianceon its unique geographical advantages,Ýzmir seeks to host 50 million visitors.Belek: Europe’sbest golf destinationNURULLAH KAYA ANTALYAA district in Turkey has beenchosen as the best golf destinationin Europe by the InternationalAssociation of Golf Tour Operators(IAGTO), putting Turkey ahead ofSpain, Scotland and England in therace to take a greater share from thebillion dollar golf tourism market.The specific location of Europe’sbest golf destination, the Belek district ofMediterranean resortcity Antalya, held acelebration ceremonyat the Cornelia GolfClub in Belek on Feb.25. Ministry ofCulture and TourismUndersecretary ÝsmetYýlmaz, AntalyaGovernor AlaaddinYüksel, IAGTO President PeterWalton, Turkish Golf FederationPresident Ahmet Aðaoðlu and CorneliaGolf Club Director General Ali Þahinwere present at the ceremony.Yýlmaz emphasized that theaward given to Turkey was a veryimportant development for Turkishtourism. “Turkey’s tomorrow will bebrighter than its today. The stepsthat are being taken are properones, nobody should doubt this,”he noted. Aðaoðlu said the share ofgolf tourism in Turkish tourismrevenues next year will be around$250 million, recalling that touristswho came to enjoy Turkey’s golfresorts spent at least seven or eighttimes as much as other tourists whosimply come for sea and sand.Belek’s natural beauty and hotelsplayed a big role in its selection asthe best golf resort of Europe,IAGTO President Walton noted.“About 50 million people play golfacross the world. European golfplayers travel to different countriesto play. A $3 billion euro market is atstake here. The countries better atinvesting and advertising have abigger slice of thiscake,” he said.Yüksel was quickto dismiss claims ofexcessive trees fellingin the creation of thegolf courses. “I havenever been interestedin the number of thetrees that have beencut down. That’s the responsibility ofthe Environment and ForestryMinistry. I’m more interested inplanting,” Yüksel said, adding thatmillions of trees had been planted inAntalya over the last five years. Henoted that cutting down old trees andplanting new ones is an important partof forestry management. “According tothe information provided to us, thenumber of the trees that have been cutdown is around 115,000. However, thenumber of planted ones is muchhigher than that,” he added.The 2008 Best Golf DestinationAward, which was presented to Þahinin December 2007 at a ceremonyheld in Mexico, was given to Yýlmaz.
R07-19-03-08.qxd 16.03.2008 22:21 Page 1HOTELSMARCH 19-22, 2008TODAY’S TOURISM 07‘Let’s makeAntalya thenew Cannes’With more Russians seeking to spendtheir annual holidays abroad as theirincome levels increase due to growingoil and natural gas revenue, Turkish tourismoperators are eager to get a bigger slice of theRussian tourism pie and predict a substantialjump in the number of Russian guests this year.Talha Görgülü, chairman of the board of theKayý Group, which brought 150,000 tourists fromRussia last year, said it was necessary to developmore appealing strategies to reach Russians fromhigher income brackets. "Spending one's summerholiday in Antalya has almost become a matter ofprestige in Russia. We need to put this to gooduse," he said. Speaking to Today's Tourism,Görgülü noted that there should be exclusive districtsand facilities for Russian tourists. "Let's designthe streets and roads of these districts in a waythat would appeal to them more. Let's bring in famousluxury brands. And we should correct theimage of a 'cheap country,' so as to draw Russiansto Antalya in the winter, too, instead of Cannes,Egypt and Dubai. Then we can have a greatershare from the Russian market," he said.Görgülü stressed that Russia had greatimportance for Turkish tourism. "Because ofour currently lacking publicity, manyRussians see Turkey as a destination to bevisited only during the summer. The situationwith European tourists is no different.We carry out all our publicity work with amindset oriented toward drawing them toTurkey only for the summer, which leaves uswith almost empty facilities during the winter.We have been unable to spread thetourism season year round. What we shoulddo now is spread it over at least 10 monthsat this stage. Turkey should be marketed likeDubai and Egypt. We should be able tospread the word that Antalya has warmweather in the winter and that Turkey's wintertourism facilities are not limited to theone on the Palandöken Mountain," he said.According to Görgülü, who said it was amust to profit more from the area's new tourismfacilities, worth $30 billion, Russians and Turkshave very similar holiday habits -- such as decidingon where to go at the last moment. Butthis is totally different in Europe. Europeansmake their decisions a year in advance, whichgives hotels the possibility of taking bolder stepsin advance and making more detailed plans.The experienced tourism mogul attributes thegreat tourist influx from Russia to these reasons:"First and foremost is that Antalya has a hotclimate. Apart from this, Russians are very similarto Turks in terms of temperament. They go toEuropean countries only for the sake of visitingthem, but come to Turkey to make themselves athome. While feeling like strangers in Europe,they are comfortable here as our cultures are verysimilar. Although Russians seem to be cold peopleat first glance, they are actually very warm --even similar to the Anatolian people. Turks treatRussians better than they treat Europeans. Also,Russia is closer to Turkey than Europe. Theyhave no visa problem, either. Moreover, Turkishcuisine is more appealing to them."Görgülü reiterated that the Russian share inTurkish tourism was growing by the day, adding:"Previously, Russians had difficulty obtaining apassport and sometimes had to wait up to sixmonths. Now, they don't suffer such difficulties,and most problems, even visa ones, have beenovercome. Their interest in spending holidaysabroad is growing with their rising incomes.That's why they have gravitated toward Turkey."Görgülü also spoke about the Kayý Group's operationsin the Russian market. They entered theRussian market in 2004, he said, adding: "On acertain level Russians have been distancingthemselves from the Germans since World WarII. That's why we were advised not to enter themarket under the German Travel International[GTI] brand; hence, we opted to use anothername to enter the Russian market, and despiteour initial concerns. Russians adopted this brandin a very short time. They even said, 'We receivedso many complaints from our citizens who preferother brands [than GTI].' We were celebratedand appreciated by Russian authorities."Görgülü attributes the great Russian interestin his company to their quality service."When entering the Russian market, our rivalssaid that we would drop our prices dramatically.But we did not change our prices,and we were greeted very positively in Russia.We have won the trust of Russians. Russians,who value power so much and who saw thatthe Kayý Group was a very powerful Turkishcompany with its hotels, operators and travelagencies. That's how we were adopted in avery short time," he said. The Kayý Groupbrought 150,000 Russians to Turkey last year,and its target this year is to surpass the200,000 number. Antalya Today's TourismEla Quality puts customer satisfaction at centerThe Ela Quality Resort Hotel, whichopened for business last year in theTurkish tourism center of Belek, is offto a remarkable start with its customer satisfactionalready at 95 percent -- no surprisethen that CEO Vadi Karatopraklý is hopefulabout the future.In an interview with Today's Tourism,Karatopraklý says his hotel has achieved thecurrent level of success by distinguishing itselfas different, something he defines as the necessaryingredient for success in the tourism industry.Turkey is superior not only in terms offacilities but also in terms of qualified personnel,he adds, even in comparison to nationslike Spain, which attract 60 million tourists ayear. He underscores the need for Turkey toexpand to year-round tourism options, ratherthan just the summer, to increase and perpetuatethis level of success.Tourism in Turkey got off to a great start in2008, Karatopraklý notes, with early reservationsfor summer hotel spaces reaching a new recordby February. He predicts that the number ofRussian tourists brought to Belek by tourism operatorsthis year may double 2007's figure of600,000. Karatopraklý, analyzing the tourismsector in general in Turkey, asserts that his hotel'ssuccess is rooted in the belief that detailsmake the difference, pointing to touches like thespecial training received by the hotel's childcarestaff. The hotel, which combines Ottoman andmodern architectural styles, has a unique approachto quality and service -- something supportedfully by human resources at the hotel, hestresses. One example of this is "Academy Q,"created by the hotel for training their personnel,a project which has cost $500,000 thus far.Offering everything from duplex suites toking villas for guests, the Ela Quality ResortHotel has 550 rooms and a 1,400-bed capacity,and prides itself on making no price distinctionbetween local and foreign guests.Another important area of service offered by thehotel are the activities and services provided foryounger guests. "With our Everland Q services weoffer very special services to kids from 1 to 17. Forexample, we even have child psychologists andnurses trained to take care of children up to 3 yearsold in special rooms designated for this care. Whilewe attend to everything from meals to naps, theirmothers and fathers can go swimming in the sea ortake advantage of our spa without having to worry,"he explains. Karatopraklý notes that up to 50 percentof their guests are from Russia, 30 percent are fromvarious European countries and the rest are Turkish.Unparalleled quality and luxury"Though we hadn't even been established ayear, in 2007 we saw [an average] 80 percentcapacity in terms of room bookings, andhosted 17,000 guests. In 2008 we will raisethe number of guests served to 30,000. Wealso aim to raise the 95 percent customersatisfaction rating of last year up higher still,and along with it we target increasing our$22 million turnover of last year to $40 millionthis year. With our remarkable attentionto detail, our high quality and services, weare one of Turkey's most luxurious hotels.Our prices start at $215 a night, though theygo as high as $7,500 for our king villas. Evenour spa services are different from other hotelsthat use Far Eastern names, as we insteadborrow from our own Turkish hamamculture, something we call the 'Lale' or'Tulip' spa concept."Positive outlook for the sectorKaratopraklý notes that despite the recent military operationinto northern Iraq, tourism numbers have notbeen negatively affected in Turkey, and that cancellationshave remained at only 1-2 percent or so. He says:"The Russians have now even started to make theirreservations for the summer in February, out of fearthat 'there will be no spaces left.' This area of the sectoris receiving lots of interest, and so far 2008 is going verywell. While we have mostly hosted German tourists inprevious years, this trend looks set to change, withmore and more Russian tourists coming in."In comparison to European countries, Turkey actuallyhas superior facilities and more qualified personnel,he adds, and as such it should be hostingmore and more tourists. He concludes: "As a sector,we need to ensure that tourism is something we offer12 months of the year. We need to do this, and in orderto do so, we need to define what it is that distinguishesus, and focus on these differences." He notesthat this is precisely what the Ela Quality ResortHotel has done in Belek. Ýstanbul Today's Tourism
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Turkey warmly welcomes Russians - Today's Zaman

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