Turkish stand attracts interest at LA tourism show

The International Los Angeles Tourism and Adventure Show, one of the world's most important tourism events, took place in Long Beach with the participation of over 3,000 tourism professionals from around the world. The Turkish Airlines stand and the stand of the Turkish Culture and Tourism Office attracted the interest of visitors during the fair. Turkish desert was offered to visitors asking about travel destinations in Turkey.

Participating countries held traditional dance shows, Turkey's featured dancer Vedat Gürsoylu and his dance group. As a part of the fair, unique dishes of different countries were introduced in the program Taste of Travel, and seminars by travel experts were also among the interesting sections of the event.

Abdullah Açıkgöz of Cappadocia-based Euphrates Tour said 65 percent of potential customers consist of American tourists. He said private tour companies attract tourists from the U.S. "High-income American tourists prefer comfortable holidays in boutique hotels. They come to Turkey in small groups and are interested in cultural tourism when compared to European tourists," he said. Açıkgöz said American groups want to explore archaeological areas and museums rather than sunbathing. "We attended the fair to increase customer satisfaction. Our customers are happy to see us here," he added. Officials from Turkish travel agency Authentic Holidays, which opened a stand at the fair for the first time, highlighted the rising number of American tourists in recent years. The company will participate in the event in coming years as they are encouraged by the figure. Thailand was given the best stand award during the biggest travel fair in the U.S.