TÜROB President Timur Bayındır was a guest on Bloomberg HT's Üst Düzey program

Turkish Hoteliers Association (TÜROB) Chairman of the Board Timur Bayındır was a guest on Bloomberg HT's Üst Düzey program. Bayındır stated that 29 hotels would be built in 19 provinces in 2018.

It is said that 2018 will be a record year for tourism. How will this summer go?

Timur Bayındır: God willing, it will be a year of recovery. We have completed almost all of the fairs. The most important indicators for us are the London, Germany and Russia fairs. That is, we analyze the sales of these three and at the same time analyze customer demand, and make an approximate forecast. In previous years, there was very strong resistance against Turkey in Europe. This year, the resistance we used to see has eased somewhat. So now Europeans are also trying to come to Turkey, that is, to Istanbul. Of course, there are various reasons for this. An affordable country, a beautiful country, a hospitable country, and at the same time we have a great deal to see. So we are trying to bring them to Turkey one way or another.

We need to get the tourists who come here to spend money somehow, we need entertainment venues; that is, the money is there, but the opportunities to spend it must also be provided.

When I look at the three-month figures for Istanbul, there is a 35% increase in the number of people compared to 2017, and there should also be a 35% increase in prices, but when we look at prices, they rose by 8%, which means it is still very cheap and we are going in by cutting prices. Across Turkey, there was a 6% increase.

For this summer there is a report from Thomas Cook; Europeans have renewed interest in Turkey, as well as Tunisia, Egypt, Spain and the Mediterranean Region. For this summer Turkey is showing an 85% occupancy rate.

Timur Bayındır: One must not fall into a misconception. The British are already a nation that loves Turkey. Many British citizens come to Turkey. But when you say it increased 85%, an impression forms in the public's mind that the number of British visitors coming to Turkey will increase by 85% compared to last year. That is not what it means. This is something said about early bookings, based on early bookings when they started. So early bookings increased by 85%. This is a wonderful thing. It does of course mean there will be an increase in the number of people as well. It does not mean that the number of those coming to Turkey will increase by 85%.

In recent years there had been a decline in European tourists. So is this a very positive point for us?

Timur Bayındır: This increase is not just here; it has also begun to be seen in Germany. For tourists to come, political matters also need to improve. That is, if relations between Turkey and France suddenly sour, the French won't come to Turkey. We need to bring people to our Turkey, and to Istanbul in particular.

Yes, this summer, God willing, we expect positive, good data in terms of European tourists too. Speaking of tourists and countries, there is the Russian market, right? The ruble has fallen. Because of this, it is said that there have been cancellations especially in the Antalya Region. What can you say regarding the Russian market?

Timur Bayındır: I do not believe there will be major cancellations or major declines. In previous years when Russian tourists came to Turkey, including 2016, each tourist spent between 800 and 850 dollars. According to the statistics released this year, the figure has fallen to 600 dollars. So they are already able to come to Turkey while spending 200 dollars less.

Was that last year's figure?

Timur Bayındır: Yes, it was the figure for 2017. Therefore, since they come to Turkey with less money, due to the ruble losing some value against the dollar, they will spend 600 dollars instead of 800. And so they will continue to come.

Tourism went through a difficult period; there were facilities that closed. Will there be new hotel investments in the coming period? Is there an increase in costs?

Timur Bayındır: For 2018, approximately 29 hotels will be built in 19 provinces, but whereas in the past amounts such as 360-700 million were spent on 15 hotels, this time 252.4 million TL will be spent on 19 hotels.

Iranian tourists are also coming in large numbers; they are becoming an important market for us, aren't they?

Timur Bayındır: That is, if Europe keeps wavering like this, Iran will become the second market after Russia. Many come to Istanbul, but many also come to Anatolia. For example, many come to Van. Iran is a very good market for us; we must hold on to the Iranian market at all costs.