One of the world's biggest long-haul carriers, Emirates inked Monday a collaboration agreement with the Türkiye Tourism Promotion and Development Agency (TGA) to promote tourism and strengthen the country's appeal across markets.
According to a statement, Emirates and TGA will collaborate to promote tourism to Türkiye and increase passenger traffic from key markets in the airline's global network of over 140 destinations. The agreement aims to enhance further Türkiye's tourist appeal in new and existing source markets.
The agreement was signed by Thierry Aucoc, Emirates’ senior vice president of Commercial Operations for Europe, and Ismail Bütün, TGA's general manager, in the presence of Adnan Kazim, Emirates' deputy president and chief commercial officer.
Aucoc expressed his pleasure with the agreement. He noted that Emirates, with its extensive flight network and strong global partnerships, is well-positioned to support the market's tourism goals and air connectivity needs.
Highlighting Türkiye's status as one of the most popular travel destinations due to its rich cultural heritage, world-renowned heritage sites and magnificent gastronomic offerings, Aucoc said, "We are confident that our joint efforts will inspire more travelers to visit Türkiye and discover many fascinating regions."
Bütün, for his part, said that Türkiye hosted 56.7 million visitors in 2023, representing a 10% increase compared to the previous year. The government expects this figure to rise to 60 million this year while it targets generating $60 billion in tourism revenues.
He noted that in 2023, the tourism sector experienced its peak, with Istanbul ranking among the world's most visited cities, hosting 17.4 million foreign visitors.
He said the positive trend continued into the first quarter of 2024, with over 9 million visitors recorded, marking a 16.7% increase compared to the previous year.
"The collaboration between Emirates and TGA is expected to bolster the tourism sector further, paving the way for new growth opportunities in the future," he added.
As part of the agreement, Emirates will explore opportunities to organize promotional trips to Türkiye and collaborate with TGA on joint marketing and promotional campaigns to highlight Türkiye's uniqueness and increase its visibility.
