TÜROB's Monthly Briefing Meeting and Traditional Luncheon Was Held with the Participation of Minister Ersoy...

The "Monthly Briefing Meeting and Traditional Luncheon" that the Association of Turkish Hoteliers (TÜROB) has held since its founding to the present day took place with high attendance, hosted by the CVK Park Bosphorus Hotel Istanbul.

At the opening of the meeting, TÜROB President Müberra Eresin, Beyoğlu Mayor Haydar Ali Yıldız, Istanbul Governor Davut Gül, and Minister of Culture and Tourism Mehmet Nuri Ersoy each delivered a speech.

In her speech, TÜROB President Müberra Eresin pointed out that, following the Kahramanmaraş-centered earthquakes, steps toward normalization had been taken through cooperation between the public and private sectors, and said: "We still feel in our hearts the pain of the earthquakes that caused significant loss of life and destruction in our province of Kahramanmaraş, plunging us all into mourning. We pray for God's mercy upon the citizens who lost their lives and wish a swift recovery to the injured." Emphasizing that the sector, guided by the principle "Today is the day for solidarity," has always rushed to the aid of its country and people whenever needed, Eresin continued: "Our sector, without waiting for instructions from anyone, demonstrated its sensitivity from the very first moment of this disaster and began providing aid and support to the best of its abilities. As TÜROB, the emergency relief supplies and search-and-rescue materials provided by our members were directed to the region in coordination with the relevant governorships, municipalities, chambers of commerce, civil society organizations and aid institutions, primarily AFAD. I would like to state with satisfaction and great pride that the accommodation establishments operating in our sector opened their hotel doors wide to shelter our earthquake-affected brothers and sisters without expecting anything in return." Stating that the presidential elections were conducted with great democratic maturity, Eresin said: "We wholeheartedly congratulate our President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who was re-elected as President as a result of the choice made by our nation with its goodwill and discernment in the second round of the presidential election. In this election, our nation has once again demonstrated that our country possesses a strong and solid tradition of democracy." Expressing her wish that the election results would prove auspicious for the country, the nation and the tourism sector, Eresin also prayed for God's mercy upon Ömer Faruk Boyacı, one of the former board members who recently passed away, and Dr. Cüneyt Mengü, Chairman of the Board of Mercan Turizm.

In his speech, Beyoğlu Mayor Haydar Ali Yıldız stated that they were proud to be realizing the tourism goals for the Century of Türkiye together, saying: "The Century of Türkiye will be a century in which we proclaim our ambition to the world, from education to health, from technology to science, from tourism to culture and the arts." Yıldız expressed his belief that the Beyoğlu Municipality would create wonderful works by cooperating with the relevant institutions in the fields of culture, the arts and tourism.

In his speech, Istanbul Governor Davut Gül conveyed that tourism is one of the locomotive sectors of the business world, saying: "With the planning we will carry out after the holiday, we will fulfill the policies and goals of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism in Istanbul in the best possible way as soon as possible." Thanking Minister Ersoy, the deputy ministers and the entire team for the support they would provide to Istanbul, Gül remarked: "We are fortunate; we have a minister who knows the sector."

In his speech at the event, Minister of Culture and Tourism Mehmet Nuri Ersoy expressed the happiness he felt at coming together with sector representatives. Pointing out that, as a result of the steps taken in 2022, tourism revenue had reached 46.3 billion dollars and the number of visitors had reached 51.4 million people, Ersoy said: "When we compare with the 2021 figures, we achieved a 53 percent increase in revenue and a 75 percent increase in the number of visitors." Noting that before the pandemic Türkiye ranked 6th among the countries receiving the most visitors, and in 2022 became the 3rd country, Mehmet Nuri Ersoy stated: "We announced our 2023 tourism targets as 60 million tourists and 56 billion dollars in revenue. Despite the earthquakes we experienced and the election process, we are maintaining our targets. Our target for 2028 is much larger: 90 million tourists and 100 billion dollars in revenue. God willing, as always, with the devoted work and support of you, our valued sector stakeholders, we will hit our targets one by one."

"We are prioritizing market diversity"

Minister Ersoy stated that, due to Türkiye's geopolitical position, it can face crises today just as it did in the past, and remarked: "As the Ministry, in order to increase our immunity to global and regional crises, to bring qualified tourists to our country, and to raise our tourism revenue targets, we are prioritizing market diversity." Also touching on the promotional activities carried out through the Türkiye Tourism Promotion and Development Agency (TGA), Ersoy said: "Thanks to the TGA, which we established four years ago, we are conducting the promotion of our country in a much more professional manner." Emphasizing that the GoTürkiye website, which broadcasts in 10 languages, reached 75 million unique visitors in the first 6 months of the year, Ersoy provided the following information: "With its 2.6 million followers, the GoTürkiye Instagram account ranks third in the world, after Australia and Dubai. In addition, in 2022 we hosted 6,610 people from 89 countries at a total of 421 events that we held in 77 of our provinces. As a result of these hosting activities, 50.3 billion in press reach and 601.8 million in social media reach were achieved."

"Istanbul's 'gastro city' title has been registered"

Conveying that product diversity is among the foremost issues given importance in tourism, Ersoy stated that, in this context, serious work was also being done in the field of gastronomy. Adding that Istanbul had been included in the Michelin Guide, Ersoy said: "Thus, Istanbul's 'gastro city' title has also been registered. In addition, 53 restaurants located in Istanbul have taken their place in the Michelin Guide. New restaurants to enter the guide and receive stars will also be announced by Michelin this coming autumn. Our aim is to add a few more destinations from Türkiye to the Michelin Guide in 2023." Underlining that the most important way to increase competitiveness in tourism is to act "on the principles of sustainability," Ersoy said: "Recognizing this demand, we decided to introduce regulatory standards to the sector. The transition under the program was planned to take place in 3 stages. The first stage of the program, which is planned to be completed by 2030, will be carried out in 2023, the second stage in 2025, and the final stage in 2030, and during this process the achievement of all international standards has been targeted. Accommodation facilities will comply with 30 percent of the standards set in the first stage, 70 percent in the second stage, and 100 percent in the third stage, and by 2030 all facilities will be 'Sustainable Tourism Certified.'" Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy conveyed that the total number of documents and certificates obtained by meeting the necessary criteria had reached 2,147 and that Türkiye is the country with the most certificates in the world, adding that all facilities qualifying for certification through 100 percent compliance are announced on the Ministry and TGA websites and on GoTürkiye. Pointing out that the government formed following President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's election victory had determined its new projects and goals with more than 20 years of experience and the excitement of a fresh start, Ersoy said: "I am confident that 2023, the year in which we step into the Century of Türkiye, will go down in history as a year in which we break new records in tourism."

Following the speeches, TÜROB President Müberra Eresin presented plaques to Murat Arslan, General Manager of the CVK Park Bosphorus Hotel Istanbul, the host of the event, and to TÜROB's new members, and those attending the meeting had a group souvenir photograph taken together.

The event was also attended by Deputy Minister of Culture and Tourism Batuhan Mumcu, Beyoğlu District Governor Mustafa Demirelli, Kızılcahamam District Governor Can Aksoy, Istanbul Chamber of Commerce Board Member Bahadır Yaşık, IBB Tourism Director Hüseyin Gazi Coşan, IBB Tourism Platform Director Dr. Şengül Altan Arslan, TÜROB Founding Member Demir Sözmen, former TÜROB Presidents Ali Güreli, Sinan Babila and Timur Bayındır, HİB - Service Exporters' Association Board Member Mehmet Erdoğan, TÜRSAB Board Member Hasan Eker, TUSİD President Güçlü Kaplangı, TÖSHİD President Mehmet Tevfik Nane, SKAL Istanbul President Can Arınel, TÜREB President Hakan Eğinlioğlu, THY Domestic Sales Head Aşkın Cantimur, the Consuls General of Germany, Argentina, Bulgaria, the People's Republic of China, Japan, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, Kosovo, the Republic of North Macedonia and Pakistan, TÜROB members, guests and members of the press.