Bulgaria, Romania, Greece, and Serbia request a ‘bus tour’ incentive
Fuel support resonates in the Balkans
Bulgaria, Romania, Greece, and Serbia request a ‘bus tour’ incentive
Tourism professionals from Bulgaria, Romania, Greece, and Serbia have been drawn to the appeal of the 6,000-dollar fuel support provided per flight to Group A travel agencies that bring tourists to Türkiye from all over the world. Organizations that arrange bus tours from these countries to Türkiye believe that applying the fuel support provided to airline companies to buses as well would bring about a significant increase in the number of tourists arriving by road.
The practice of providing 6,000 dollars in fuel support per flight to Group A travel agencies that bring tourists to Türkiye from all over the world has also resonated in the Balkans. A common request came to the fore in the recent international contacts of the Association of Turkish Hoteliers (TÜROB), which, as part of its promotional activities, has been closely focusing in particular on countries near Türkiye. Tourism professionals from Bulgaria, Romania, Greece, and Serbia believe that an incentive scheme similar to the fuel support would significantly boost demand for tourist bus tours from their countries to Türkiye. Timur Bayındır, President of the Association of Turkish Hoteliers (TÜROB), stating that they support this proposal coming from neighboring tourism professionals, emphasized that tourists who come or could come to our country from Bulgaria, Romania, Greece, and Serbia generally prefer road travel due to high costs. Bayındır said: “For this reason, applying the fuel support provided for charter flights to the tourist buses of Balkan countries, where road transport is popular, would increase activity.”
It could be a campaign like ‘Bring Your Neighbor Along’
Pointing out that this request has been continually voiced by foreign tourism professionals at the tourism fairs recently held in these countries, Bayındır stated that, as TÜROB, they too are of the view that an incentive scheme of this kind would increase the number of tourists arriving by road from neighboring countries. Bayındır said: “Together with neighboring countries, a different dimension of the ‘Bring Your Neighbor Along’ campaign launched by our esteemed President could be put into practice. There is significant potential in geographically close countries that we can benefit from in the field of tourism.”
High potential in Romania
Recalling that while total package tour sales in Romania rose by approximately 20 percent in 2016, sales to Türkiye alone recorded a 25 percent decline, Bayındır provided the following information: “Romania, which is among the most steadily developing markets for Türkiye, was among our markets that showed comparatively the smallest decline in Europe, with a 19 percent drop in the number of tourists in 2016. Last year, 357,000 Romanian tourists came to Türkiye. Of this number, 84,000 chose İstanbul. While Antalya, Kuşadası, and İstanbul are the prominent destinations in the market, Çanakkale and Assos are definitely must-visit spots for Romanians, especially on trips made by road. Organizations that arrange bus tours from Romania to our country are requesting that the fuel support provided by our government to airline companies also be extended to buses. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ announcement that work has begun to allow EU citizens to enter our country with their national ID cards was welcomed with satisfaction in Romania, and it was stated that implementing this practice as soon as possible would have positive results in terms of tourism. This year, we expect an increase in the number of tourists coming to our country from Romania to regions other than İstanbul.”
Bulgarian tourists come for day-trip shopping
Noting that the majority of tourists coming from Bulgaria do so for the purpose of day-trip shopping and visits in the Thrace region, Bayındır continued as follows: “Bulgarian tourists rarely stay in hotels. In 2016, 1.7 million tourists came from this country, a decline of 7.1 percent. As of February, overnight İstanbul-Sofia trains began running through to June 2017. During the summer season covering the June-September period, İstanbul-Sofia-Belgrade train services will be in operation. As Bulgaria’s health services do not offer the desired variety and level expected, demand for Türkiye in terms of health tourism is increasing, and interest in Türkiye is being observed for health services such as eye care, dental care, and check-ups.”
The Greek market could also pick up
Saying “As for Greece, with the number of Turkish tourists traveling from Türkiye to this country exceeding 1 million, the roles between the two countries in the tourism sector have reversed, and Türkiye has become a source market rather than just a destination,” Bayındır used the following expressions: “Taking into account the ongoing economic conditions in Greece, an increase in the number of tourists coming to our country from Greece in 2017 is not expected. However, incentives to be applied to road transport could create movement in this market as well.”