The Italian Tourism Federation (FTO) Turkey and Italy Tourism Development Panel was held...

As a result of the contacts established with the Italian market in cooperation with the Republic of Turkey Ministry of Culture and Tourism, TÜROB, Turkish Airlines and TÜRSAB, the Turkey and Italy Tourism Development Panel was held with the Italian Tourism Federation (FTO), which was invited to Turkey for the EMITT Tourism Fair.

The opening speech of the Panel, held at the EMITT Tourism Fair at the TÜYAP Fair Center, was delivered by TÜROB Vice President Müberra Eresin together with FTO President Luca Patane and officials from THY and TÜRSAB. In her speech, Eresin touched on the importance of relations between Turkey and Italy in light of their cultural and historical ties, stating: "Owing to its geographical as well as its social and cultural ties, Italy has always been among the leading high-quality and important source markets for Turkish tourism. We observe that the market, which had lost momentum in recent years, has been on the rise since 2018. We believe that as of 2019 this upward trend will accelerate and, in the near future, will once again exceed the 500,000 mark as it did in the past. As the Association of Turkish Hoteliers, we take great pleasure in hosting our Italian friends, and we will do everything we can to develop this cooperation."

In his speech, FTO President Luca Patane stated that they were very pleased to be in Istanbul, that as FTO they were ready to strengthen tourism relations, and that they were grateful for the close interest shown by stakeholders in Turkey.

Following the opening speeches, the first session of the program addressed the topic of "Turkey for Italian Tourists", views were shared on product diversity and perception, and the advantages of Turkey's transportation and quality of service were emphasized. In the second session, the topic of "Italy for Turkish Tourists" was discussed. It was noted that Italy is the number one destination for Turks traveling abroad, and that the momentum would increase further with visa facilitation and promotional efforts carried out by Italy.

After the speeches, the Italian delegation visited the EMITT fair area as well as the TÜROB and THY stands. The program concluded with B2B meetings held in the afternoon.