Recep Yavuz

The implementation of visa-on-arrival applications for several Greek Islands has sparked significant interest among Turkish tourists, with Rhodes emerging as a particularly popular destination.

Over 5,000 Turkish visitors crossed from Marmaris and Fethiye in the western province of Muğla to Rhodes Island during the week-long holiday period.

Several Greek islands, where visa-on-arrival applications will commence on April 1, are expected to be the top destination abroad during the upcoming nine-day Eid al-Fitr holiday, according to tourism experts.

Long waiting time in traffic has been one of the most common complaints of visitors coming to the tourism hotspot of Antalya, which hosts millions of domestic and foreign holidaymakers annually, this tourism season.

Sixteen million tourists are expected to visit Antalya this year, breaking the all-time tourism record of 2019.

With a whopping 585 thousand reservations made and a predicted holiday activity of 2 million people expected, the southern province of Antalya expects a historic spike in tourism during the nine-day Eid al-Adha holiday.

Russian tourists' bookings for holidays in Türkiye, especially in Antalya, have increased by 20 percent in the past few weeks compared with April and May, Turkish daily Milliyet has reported.

Russian holidaymakers had delayed vacation plans due to the ongoing war and elevated inflation which eroded their purchasing power. Russians were looking for alternative destinations to Türkiye.

Türkiye is the second cheapest holiday destination for German tourists after Albania, Recep Yavuz, from the Antalya City Council's Tourism Working Group, has said, citing a recent study by Germany's Federal Statistics Office (Destatis).

The study compares holiday destinations based on accommodation costs and daily expenditure.

Foreign tourist arrivals in Antalya slowed in the first half of May, Recep Yavuz from the Antalya City Council Tourism Working Group has said, adding that this was due to fewer visits by Russian holidaymakers.

Antalya saw a record number of foreign tourist arrivals in January, February, March and April this year. However, tourism activity appeared to have lost some momentum in May.

Turkish citizens living abroad have taken the fifth place after Russians, Germans, British and Poles who visited the southern province of Antalya the most in 2022, leaving behind the number of expats witnessed in 2019.

Tourism companies and hoteliers in Antalya are seeking to lure millions of European pensioners, betting that the rising cost of living in the continent will make the province an appealing destination.

More than 1 million Germans have visited the southern province of Antalya since the start of the year, over-taking Russians after five years.