All-time record in Cappadocia pleases tourism professionals

In Cappadocia, which is on the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage List, the visitor record of all time was broken in 8 months, which made tourism professionals happy.

The number of visitors to the museums and ruins in Cappadocia, which stands out with its natural, historical and cultural riches, has reached 2 million 545 thousand 33 in 8 months of the year, surpassing the number of visitors in the "golden year" of 2019, from January to August, TRT Haber reports.

Cappadocia, which attracts tourists with its fairy chimneys, valleys covered with natural rock formations, historical monasteries carved from the rock, cave hotels, hot air balloon tours and various activities, has returned to its days before the Kovid-19 epidemic.

The number of tourists in the region, which increased by 98 per cent in the same period of this year compared to the January-August period of last year and reached 2 million 545 thousand 33, put a smile on the face of tourism professionals.

Talip Aldemir, Chairman of the Cappadocia Regional Representative Board of the Association of Turkish Travel Agencies (TÜRSAB), stated that the tourist density is seen in every area from accommodation facilities to agencies, from companies that organize activities to other tourism components.

Stating that they had a productive tourism season and that they expected more intense processes in 2023 and 2024 thanks to the expanding market range, Aldemir said:

"We evaluated 2019 as the year of records. We expected more visitors in 2020. Unfortunately, the pandemic affected Cappadocia as well as the whole world. The year 2022 brought a smile to the face of tourism professionals. According to the numerical data, we left 2019 behind in the number of visitors. Next year, We especially welcome our Japanese guests. We think that if there is no other problem such as a pandemic abroad, we will reach more tourists from the Balkans, Far East, South America and Europe. The feature that distinguishes Cappadocia from other tourism destinations is its natural formations. You can find very beautiful beaches in its place and you can find ruins from different civilizations in many places, but the natural formation of Cappadocia is one of the most special regions of the world that has hosted many civilizations.

Muzaffer Büyükbaş, the owner of the company that provides agency services to local and foreign tourists, said that after the last two years of Kovid-19 measures, there has been an increase in the rate of people travelling and that Cappadocia is one of the most demanded places.

Explaining that reservation requests have not slowed down, Büyükbaş said, "We are approaching the end of 2022. We continue to host guests in the period we call the third quarter. We have passed the golden year of 2019, which we targeted after the pandemic. Reservations are very good at the moment. The busy period continues until the beginning of November. Then the New Year's Eve. and reservations are coming in for the period of Christmas celebrations." he said.