Streets and shopping avenues of Türkiye's northwestern city of Edirne have been packed with visitors from across the border, a month after a regulation came into force allowing Bulgarian citizens to enter without a passport.

Known as frequent visitors of Edirne, tourists and shoppers from Bulgaria have been heading over the border almost daily to meet many of their needs and benefit from Türkiye’s competitive prices and high-quality goods.

Arrivals have peaked after a decree in the Official Gazette on Aug. 27 said travelers from Bulgaria have been cleared to visit Türkiye’s with their national ID cards.

Bulgarians previously enjoyed a visa exemption for touristic purposes and transit passes with a maximum residence period of 90 days out of a 180-day period.

Türkiye and Bulgaria share friendly and neighborly relations as NATO allies. The Turkish diaspora in Bulgaria also plays an important role in promoting political and economic relations between the two countries.

The regulation seems to have added a fresh boost for Edirne as arrivals from Bulgaria through Kapıkule and Hamzabeyli border crossings have started to top 20,000 over the weekend, said the chair of the city’s trade and industry chamber.

"At the weekend, our maximum numbers were hovering from 12,000 to 16,000. Now we are seeing 20,000. It makes a serious contribution to the city’s economy," Edirne Trade and Industry Chamber head Recep Zıpkınkurt told the Demirören News Agency (DHA).

This figure will likely increase even more in the coming days, Zıpkınkurt says.

"Because our border crossings are seriously crowded. We have expatriate entering and leaving. With relief at the gates expected in the coming days, we will experience a significant increase in guests from Bulgaria," he noted.

Zıpkınkurt also said arrivals from the Black Sea and inland regions also gained pace, in addition to those from nearby areas, with the latest regulation. "In general, there was an entrance route of about 180 kilometers (112 miles), this went up to 350-400 kilometers," he added.

The number of Bulgarian tourists arriving in Edirne for shopping is expected to increase by at least 30% compared to previous years, Zıpkınkurt said. "Together with the entries with IDs, the number of Bulgarian tourist arrivals will exceed 3 million by the end of the year."

Local trader Mehmet Demir also stressed the increase in mobility in the city.

"There have been many people coming from Bulgaria with identity cards over the last two to three weeks," Demir said, expressing expectations of even further increase in the coming weeks.

Aysel Dursun, a Bulgarian citizen of Turkish origin, entered Türkiye with an identity card together with her husband Hasan Dursun.

"We came very comfortably. I appeal to the citizens of Bulgaria to get out and come. Everything is very high quality and cheap here," Dursun told DHA.

"It is cheap and convenient for us. We buy shoes here, we shop for the house. We buy everything," said another Bulgarian citizen, Mustafa Mitkov.

It saves us money, because we come comfortably. With the exemption, anyone can come. Now it’s easier to come to Türkiye."