Category: Travel

The other side of Turkey

The undiscovered treasure of Izmir

Turkey is the only country in the world which is divided by two continents – Europe and Asia. There is busy bustling Istanbul on the Europe side with its over 17 million inhabitants (or even more, nobody is quite sure) and Izmir on the Asian side, which is far quieter with 3.8 million inhabitants.

The harbor city of Izmir is bidding on Expo 2020 against Russia, Qatar, Brazil, Istanbul, and Ankara. But then again, it has an 8,500-year-old history and is the second most important and largest harbor city in Turkey. Furthermore, Izmir is number one for exports in Turkey and is the gateway to Central Asia with its direct access to a 1.5 billion population. The 3.8 million-strong metropolis boosting 15 percent of Turkey’s GDP, posted an economic growth of 8.9 percent last year, which was topped only by China.

Izmir is on the most western side of the east and is the third largest city in Turkey. This ancient city was generally referred to as Smyrna in the English translation until about 1930. Here, the legendary female warriors, the Amazons, founded Izmir (Symrna) in ancient times, with nearby Ephesus serving as the think tank of philosophy.

Izmir and the city of Homer both enjoy over 300 days of sunshine a year and, unlike Istanbul, Ankara (the capital of Turkey), it boasts Corniche, which is over 10 kilometers long and not so well known, along the Aegean seaside.

Traffic is not an issue over here on the Asian side. Roads and highways are in very good condition and are nearly empty, compared to the jam-packed streets of Istanbul. All road signs on the highways point out 2 directions, one to Istanbul and the other to Ankara – both are about a 5- to 6-hour drive away, and all of the coastal roads are simply enchanting.

Seventy kilometers away, is the historical coastal town of Cesme, perched on a promontory atop a peninsula west of Izmir. It is the Turkish answer to luxurious Porto Rotondo in Sardinia, Italy. This is the most favorite spot of the rich and the Turkish jet set, with an impressive marina and the most exclusive yachts.

Only a 10-minute drive from Cesme, with a direct view of the sea and the Greek island of Chios (in Turkish: Sakız Adası) is Çiftlikköy, a lovely little fishing village “hidden around the corner.”

A Turkish friend took me to HouseOtel with 8 rooms called “House Butik Oteli,” a two-story villa with very cozy rooms on the seafront. The sign outside the hotel entrance shows a cat and dog, as it is a pet-friendly hotel. Other than the big players in hotel industry, the HouseOtel has it already written on the entrance door right from beginning.

Yildaz, the owner, is a very successful former businesswoman, who comes to the guest table in the garden at breakfast time and sits, chats, and writes out invoices. With hand-written invoices, home-baked cookies and fresh pastry, and an open kitchen with delicious food, it makes all the difference as quickly becoming a place where you want to come back. www.housebutikotel.com

On the opposite side is the Greek island of Chios. Here, the Greek crisis seems far away. What about the euro? “Now we are glad that Turkey is not part of the EU; our economy is strong and half of our country is in Asia. The euro is a challenge, but we have other priorities,” is the answer given to that question.

The boat trip to Europe and Greece island of Chios will take only one hour. Turkish people love to go over there and find it most enjoyable. Europe is part of their heart and many have Greek roots.

Sehnaz Yilmaz, an attorney at law who is running for Parliament, has studied in the USA and cannot imagine living in Istanbul. She thinks that the living quality is so much better in Izmir than in Istanbul. She takes me to Cesme Altin Yunus Resort & Thermal Hotel, which has 465 rooms and a superb 200-yacht marina. From where the yachts anchor, one can head straight into one of the 34 marina rooms.

Although nearly 30 years old (from 1974), the hotel is in perfect condition and is very popular among Turkish families for its all-inclusive structure with tea time offering a magnificent sea view. It is a great place for Turkish weddings with 8 banquet rooms and functions that can accommodate up to 1,200 guests. During the same afternoon, we ran into three wedding ceremonies, and on the way back, we passed beautiful scenery and very clean and picturesque villages.

While everybody knows Istanbul, Izmir and the Aegean region is still a hidden treasure for business. Many consider Izmir the most modern and liberal city in Turkey. The modern airport built in 2006, is 18 kilometers from the city center. Izmir is well prepared to present Expo 2020 and come out of the shadow of big sister, Istanbul. Izmir stands ready to become an important city in the business of convention and congress destinations.

Source: Elisabeth Lang, eTN

via The undiscovered treasure of Izmir The other side of Turkey – eTurboNews.com.

October 8, 2011
Turkish tourism drive threatens ancient sites

Push for economic progress and development sidelines scholarship

By Andrew Finkel | From issue 228, October 2011
Published online 6 Oct 11 (News)

Tayyip Erdogan, the Turkish prime minister, has expressed his annoyance with “bits of old potsherds” that were getting in the way of major infrastructure projects. Above, ancient pots were discovered in 2006 at the site of the Marmaray Project, aimed at building a tunnel under the Boshporus straits in Istanbul

ANKARA. Turkey’s ability to manage its vast cultural heritage may be at crisis point, experts warn. The recent decision to transfer the excavation permits from three well-known classical sites from non-Turkish to Turkish universities—a practice almost unheard of in the protocol-laden world of archaeology—is a cracking of the whip over foreign scholars regarded as not working fast enough to transform the country’s extensive array of antiquities into tourist attractions.

“The threats are direct and indirect and the atmosphere is just that much more difficult,” says Stephen Mitchell, the honorary secretary of the British Institute in Ankara. “Getting a permit is now a process of negotiation and academic concerns are not always the first priority,” he says.

A recent broadside published by one of the country’s most eminent archaeologists describes policies more concerned with policing scholarship than confronting the wholesale erosion of Turkey’s vast heritage. The 235-page critique, which translates as “Archaeological Excavation: Scholarly Endeavour or Shovelling Earth?”, will find a sympathetic audience among non-Turkish archaeologists who find themselves increasingly stranded in a maze of regulation and museum politics. The author, Mehmet Ozdogan, professor emeritus in the pre-history department of Istanbul University, describes the system for granting and renewing research permits as having degenerated into an unseemly process of “favouritism, threats and personal jealousies”.

At stake is the material record of one and a half million years scattered in every corner of a country three times the size of the UK. There are more than 200 active projects (half of them surveys rather than full-blooded excavations). On one hand is the little visited central Anatolian site of Boncuklu, 1,000 years older than nearby Catalhöyük and a “missing link” between hunter-gatherers and sedentary peoples. By contrast, the Österreichisches Archäologisches Institut received a permit to work on the classical city of Ephesus in 1898, which now resembles a Cecil B. DeMille film set and attracts some two million tourists every year.

The variety and appeal of Turkey’s past, as much as its sandy beaches, is a pillar of a tourism industry valued at more than $21bn this year. If anything, that figure is set to rise as Turkey seeks to provide an alternative for visitors avoiding Egypt and Tunisia.

Booming industry In recent years the Turkish government has made developing its tourist industry a top priority and it has become one of the most important sectors of the Turkish economy. According to a report compiled in March by the market research company RNCOS, the country has surpassed China and Russia to become the fastest growing tourist destination. The ministry of culture and tourism has set a target of 30 million visitors for 2011. The country is also investing in religious or faith tourism. The ministry is working to restore Muslim, Jewish and Christian sites with the aim of attracting more than three million religious tourists by 2012—1.7 million more than in 2010.

Culture and tourism share the same ministry in Turkey and it is not always clear which is the master and which the servant. Directors of digs are being asked to extend their work beyond the two-month university summer break and to devote a greater portion of their resources to restoration—particularly now the revenue from many sites has been turned over for collection to the Association of Turkish Travel Agencies (Tursab).

While most archaeologists understand, at least in principle, the need for public outreach, “cultural site management is a field in its own right and not always what academics do best”, says Nora Seni, the head of the Istanbul-based Institut Français d’Etudes Anatoliennes. The French academy is smarting after having permits cancelled for two major classical sites, Letoon and Xanthos.

There are now close to 30 archaeology departments in Turkish universities, many of them in new private “red bricks”, which have opened in the past ten years. This has produced a better trained generation of Turkish scholars as well as an academic cadre eager to advance their careers.

The once mighty Deutsches Archäologisches Institut (DAI), responsible for some of the most important sites in Turkey, has in particular seen its sails trimmed. In 2010, Ankara refused to renew any of its permissions until the very last minute as part of a campaign to force the return of a Hittite sphinx that once guarded the gate of Hattusa and was shipped for repairs to Berlin in the 1930s (The Art Newspaper, July/August). It has now been returned. However, the institute, along with Freiburg University, was stripped of its permit for Aizanoi, famous for its Temple of Zeus, where work had been grinding to a halt.

Despite this painfully public slap on the wrist, most believe that German archaeology was secretly grateful for this forced economy on a site whose results were no longer cutting edge. “Modern archaeology is about context and the discovery of transitions, not the recovery of beautiful objects,” says Elif Denel, the Ankara director of the American Research Institute in Turkey. “In some cases you can answer big questions with a single season’s survey and without lifting a spade,” says Felix Pirson, the director of the DAI in Istanbul.

The danger is that energies will be diverted into producing Disney-style attractions. Yet tourism may be the most benign of the economic pressures facing Turkish archaeology.

Always on the horizon is urbanisation and an economy developing at a prodigious rate. Allianoi, a Roman spa in the west of Turkey, and the garrison town of Zeugma in the east are already submerged under dammed rivers. The medieval Arab city of Hasankeyf faces becoming a similar watery grave.

Many of the country’s most important projects race against the clock to rescue major sites while an army of bulldozers waits with engines running. Work on an interchange station for the Istanbul metro system uncovered an old Byzantine harbour and 32 buried ships: commuters are still waiting as the emergency dig finishes its seventh year. There are clear signs that government patience has finally worn thin. New legislation removes responsibility from the ministry of culture and tourism. Instead protection is now the responsibility of the ministry for the environment, which has a dismal record of standing up against wholesale development.

Tayyip Erdogan, the Turkish prime minister, in a speech in February expressed his annoyance with “bits of old potsherds” that were getting in the way of major infrastructure projects. “People have to come first,” Erdogan said, while announcing the creation of what is effectively a new city on Istanbul’s remaining green belt along the Black Sea, a new Bosphorus bridge, and a Panama-style canal that would cut the Thracian peninsula in two. While time may be its subject, it may not be a luxury Turkish archaeology enjoys.

October 7, 2011
Number of Arab tourists visiting Turkey up 26.7 pct

According to data by Istanbul Culture and Tourism Directorate, 676,675 Arab tourists visited Istanbul between January and September 2011.

The number of Arab tourists visiting Istanbul year-on-year in the first nine months of 2011 rose by 26.7 percent.

According to data by Istanbul Culture and Tourism Directorate, 676,675 Arab tourists visited Istanbul between January and September 2011.

6,079,873 foreign tourists visited the city in the first nine months of 2011. A total of 5,654,128 foreign tourists had visited Istanbul in the same period last year.

Of foreigners who visited Turkey in the January-September period this year, Germans took the lead as it sent 743,094 visitors. Russia followed Germany with 369,006 of its nationals.

Ahmet Emre Bilgili, head of Istanbul Culture and Tourism Directorate, told AA correspondent that there had been a great hike in the number of Arab tourists visiting Istanbul. Bilgili said he considered that people wanted to see Turkey, as its popularity had been increasing in the world.

Mutual visa exemption between Turkey and Arab countries contributed to rise in number of Arab tourists, he said.

AA

October 7, 2011
Visit ancient cities in Turkey for less than $1,600

By Mary Forgione Special to Tribune Newspapers

10:32 a.m. CDT, October 4, 2011

The Blue Mosque and Topkapi Palace in Istanbul as well as ancient temples in Ephesus and Pergamon are some of the sights visited on this inexpensive package tour from Friendly Planet Travel. If the dates work for you, this is a great price for a package that explores multiple cities in Turkey.

The eight-day Taste of Turkey tour costs $1,572 per person, based on double occupancy, with tax and fees for departures on Jan. 18 and Feb. 1. The price is good for reservations made before Oct. 12; it goes up $300 after that date (other departure dates are available too but not at this price).

The trip includes nonstop airfare from Chicago to Istanbul on Turkish Airlines, airport transfers, hotel, daily breakfast, guided sightseeing tours and more. Check out the full itinerary and package details.

Contact: Friendly Planet Travel, 800-555-5765

via Visit ancient cities in Turkey for less than $1,600 – chicagotribune.com.

October 5, 2011
Turkey and Ukraine Lead the Most Visited Countries among Georgians

Written by Tako Khelaia

The FINANCIAL — 1,793,449 foreign guests visited Georgia during first 8 month of 2011, which is a 43% growth in accordance to last year’s index according to the Georgian National Tourism Agency (GNTA).

For the first 8 month of 2010, 1,258,488 foreigners visited Georgia which is 534,961 less in accordance to 2011. As GNTA notes, for the first 8 months of 2009, 942, 371 foreigners traveled to Georgia and the number of guests in 2009 was 35% less in accordance to the first 8 months of 2010.

The number of Georgian tourists visiting foreign countries has also increased by 4% this year. According to the index of the first 8 months of 2011, 1,415,385 Georgians visited foreign countries, while in 2010 only 1,356,599 did which were 58,786 less comparing to the first 8 months of 2011.

According to the GNTA, Turkey still tops the list of the most visited countries. A total of 28% of Georgian tourists visited Turkey during the first 8 months of 2011. Ukraine holds the second place of the most frequently visited countries. Overall 16% of Georgian tourists visited Ukraine , 15% Armenia, 9% Germany, 9% Azerbaijan, 4% USA, 4% United Kingdom,3% Italy, 2% Egypt, 2% Poland and the remaining 8% to other parts of the world.

Tbilisi has been the most popular tourism destination among foreign tourists. A total of 60% of the total visitors to Tbilisi during the first 8 months of 2011 were foreigners. Batumi was visited by 43% of tourists, Mtskheta by 8%, Kutaisi by 6%, Lagodekhi 5%, Kazbegi 4%, Gori 4%, Kobuleti 3%, Mestia/Ushguli, 2%, Davit Gareji, 2%, Vardzia 1%, Telavi 1%, Bakuriani 1%, Gudauri 1 % and the other 9% belongs to different other destinations in Georgia.

“For the purpose of leisure and recreation, 34% of foreigners visited Georgia during the first 8 months of 2011. For visiting friends and relatives, 26% of tourists visited our country and 20% of foreign guests were on their business and professional trips in Georgia during the first 8 months of 2011. 10% of foreign tourists visited our country for the purpose of transit, 3% due to education and training and 3% for employment,” the GNTA notes.

“2 % of foreign guests visited Georgia during the first 8 months of 2011 for the purpose of shopping, 2% for health and medical care, 0.2 % for religious reasons or pilgrimages and 0.1 % of foreigners were on diplomatic missions,” GNTA notes.

The majority of tourists are business travelers and transit travelers (31%) who stayed for one day in Georgia. According to the statistics 26% of tourists stayed for just 2-3 days, 12 % for 4-5 days, 8% for 6-7 days, 10% for 8-14 days, 4% for 15-20 days, 5% for 21-30 days and 4% for 31 or more days. The average number of nights spent in Georgia was 8, while for the purpose of leisure and recreation the average length of a visit to Georgia was 6 days. While visiting friends and relatives in Georgia, the average length of a visit was 11 days and for the purpose of business or professional duty the average length of a visit was 13 days.

According to the GNTA, 42% of tourists preferred to stay with their families, 38% used hotel accommodation, 9% guesthouses or cottages, 8% hired a flat, 5% stayed in transport facilities, 1% stayed in camping or trailer park and 0.3% were in Airport s or in railway stations. The average expenditure of one tourist during 8 days spent in Georgia was 1,470 GEL.

The number of domestic tourism for the first 8 month of 2011 has as well increased in Georgia and in accordance to the same period of last year the number has raised by 20%. For the first 8 months of 2011 the number of domestic tourists was 866,551, while in 2010 there were 721,382, which is 145,175 times less in accordance to this year’s index.

“The region of Adjara was visited by 1,006,319 tourists during the first 8 months of 2011, of which 655,419 were Georgians and 350,900 were foreign tourists. The number of tourists visiting Adjara has increased by about 36% this year. During the first 8 months of 2010, 741,475 tourists visited Adjara from which 498,393 were Georgians and 243,082 foreigners,” the GNTA notes.

“Among the purposes of domestic tourists for traveling within the territory of Georgia, visiting friends and relatives was the most prioritized. A total of 49% of domestic tourists visited their friends and relatives, 39% were visiting different parts of Georgia for leisure and recreation, 6% for business and professional purpose, 3% for Health and medical care, 2% for pilgrimage, 1% for employment, 1% for shopping and 0.3% for education or trainings,” GNTA officials note.

According to the GNTA the average length of domestic tourists’ visits to different parts of Georgia was 5 days. 23% of domestic tourists stayed for one day, 35% for 2-3 days, 10% for 4-5 days, 12% for 6-7 days, 12% for 8-14 days, 3% for 15-20 days, 3% for 21-30 days and 1% for 31 or more days. 75% of domestic tourists preferred to stay with their families, 5% stayed at guesthouses or cottages, 4% in hotels, 2% hired a flat, 1% stayed in different transport facilities, 1% went for camping or staying in trailers, 1% in monasteries, 0.4 % in hospitals and 12% didn’t spent the night at all.

“The most attractive tourism destination for Georgians was Tbilisi which was visited by 13% of tourists during the first 8 months of 2011. Batumi was visited by 8% of Georgian tourists, Kutaisi/Motsameta/Sataplia by 6%, Tskneti/Manglisi/Tsavkisi/Kodjori by 3% Mtskheta/Armazi/Akhatani/Saguramo by 3%, Kobuleti by 3%, Khashuri/Surami/Kvishkheti by 3% and Bakuriani by 2%,” the GNTA notes.

“Zugdidi was visited by 2% of Georgian tourists, Gori by 2%, Sighnaghi/Bodbe by 2%, Zestafoni by 2%, Telavi by 2%, Chiatura, Kaspi, Lagodekhi, Samtredia, Borjomi and Ozurgeti were also visited by 2% of Georgian tourists. The other destinations in Georgia were visited by 42 % of domestic tourists,” the GNTA notes.

The average expenditure of Georgian tourists in Georgia was on average 581 GEL during 5 days. The average expenditure of domestic tourists on residence for 5 days was 211 GEL, on food and drinks 117 GEL, on souvenirs and gifts 53 GEL, on transport 43 GEL, on train fares 26 GEL, on transport 46 GEL and on other important goods and products 85 GEL.

October 4, 2011
Turkey holidays in october

It is a particularly good time to go because the end of holiday season will guarantee you an incredibly low price

by T N

Holidays in Turkey are fantastic at any time of year because the weather is always great and October is a particularly good time to take a holiday to Turkey, because while the weather and the beaches will still be stunning, the end of holiday season will guarantee you an incredibly low price.

During October, Turkey hosts a variety of cultural events, festivals and other entertainments so that there will still be plenty to see, do and enjoy during an unforgettable holiday in Turkey.

October is home to the Ataturk Dam Watersports Festival, a wildly popular annual event held in Sanliurfa. A huge variety of exciting water based event will take place, including rowing, sailing and canoeing with teams from all over the world, travelling to Turkey in order to compete. Competitors are sure to make a real splash, allowing you to take in all of the thrilling watersports action during your Turkey holiday.

If you holiday in Turkey because you love the culture of this beautiful and exotic country, then you won’t want to miss the spellbinding Alanya International Culture and Arts Festival. This colourful and engaging even offers Turkey holidaymakers a powerful and affecting glimpse in to the culture and traditions of the nation. Turkish music and poetry are celebrated in Alanya, which also happens to be a gorgeous holiday resort, full of mesmerising beaches, luxurious hotels and exquisite restaurants; making it not only a source of great cultural interest but the perfect destination for a Turkey holiday in October.

But that’s not. There are plenty of other fantastic diversions and experiences available to you if you choose to holiday in Turkey after the close of the busy summer period. Why not book a brilliant Turkey holiday package for October, and enjoy all of its landmark holiday resort qualities and plenty more besides?

via Turkey holidays in october.

October 3, 2011