By Ceyda Caglayan

ISTANBUL, (Reuters) – Turkey’s tourism is expected to rebound to pre-pandemic levels in 2018, boosting its economy following a currency crash, which has made the country a more appealing destination than ever. Industry officials claim that this will help boost the nation’s crisis-stricken economy.

Hotel and tourism representatives warned, despite the optimism, that rising costs for utilities, food, and wages will reduce profits, and provide broader benefits to an economy in turmoil from inflation, which has soared up to 20 years.

High season in Turkey begins May and includes Aegean and Mediterranean beaches as well as historic treasures.

Europeans have begun to book trips, which is good news especially for President Tayyip Erdoan’s government. Erdogan has adopted a new policy that relies heavily on foreign income as a way of reducing the current account deficit.

High speed bookings are a hallmark of our early bookings. Strong bookings, especially from Britain, have been recorded. Bulent Bulbuloglu (Vice Chair Turkish Hoteliers Federation) said that they are almost on par with 2019

According to him, early bookings are traditionally made by Britons. They serve as a guide for the season and can be used to book other European countries and Central Asia.

In January 2019, Antalya was home to 117,818 foreign visitors, which is the same as what happened in 2019, data revealed.

Bulbuloglu stated that a possible escalation to the Russia-Ukraine crise could be a risk for the season.

We get positive signals from Germany and Belgium. The Scandinavian markets also send good signals… Turkey is now a place where tourists can enjoy the most economical holidays using their local currencies. For foreigners, it is a paradisiac destination.”

Turkey is even more affordable because of the 44% decline in the lira against USD last year. All-inclusive deals also make it cheaper.

“SERIOUS PROBLEMS” WITH COSTS

Oya Nain, Turkish Tourism Investors’ Organization head, stated that the average nightly price for a 5-star hotel is about 70 euro in Turkey and around 200 Euros in Spain.

The forecast for tourism revenues in 2019 was made by Nureddin Nebati (Finance Minister), up from the $24.5 billion of 2021. In 2019, they were $34.5 billion

Erdogan’s current economic policy seeks to lower inflation and create a surplus on the current accounts. Tourism revenues are a crucial factor.

It seems that we’ll reach the target of $34-$35 trillion. However, revenues alone will not be enough. Narin also spoke of the cost angle.

According to her, foreign arrivals would be close to 2019 levels or 10% lower than in 2019. However, making profits is more important for the industry that how many people come.

“We are having serious difficulties with the cost of living. Narin explained that we are experiencing rampant increases in the cost of electricity, gas, and other services.

Turkey’s annual inflation reached 48.69% as of January.

Ulkay Atmaca is the general manager at Innvista Hotel Belek, Antalya. He said that he had 42% to raise prices for this season, but could not compensate for rising costs.

Muberra Eresin, head of Hotel Association of Turkey said that sharp price increases are putting pressure on industry margins. In just one month, costs rose 60% to 65%.

We have signed agreements with operators, and we set our prices. “It’s impossible for us to reflect all these added costs on our prices currently,” she stated.