The number of tourists coming from Europe, one of Türkiye's main markets, continues to steadily increase. Corendon, one of the leading players in the European market, brought around 2 million tourists to Türkiye in 2023. The company aims to increase this number by 20% next year.
Yıldıray Karaer, Chairman of the Board of Corendon Airlines, stated that they brought approximately 2 million tourists to Türkiye in 2023, saying, "Both in terms of tour operator and airline sides, the figures are close to those of the previous year. We started the year expecting higher numbers, but the major earthquake in February caused a period of stagnation in demand for Türkiye. Even though the season started later because of this, demand reached expected levels in July and August."
"High expectations for 2024"
Referring to the tourism sector, Karaer said, "2024 is a year with high expectations, and plans are being made accordingly. However, the impact of the global economic situation, which has been unstable for a while, is significant. We foresee that the demand for popular holiday destinations, especially Türkiye, will be higher than in 2023. We have shaped our plans and investments accordingly. In 2024, we will offer a seat capacity of 2.4 million to Türkiye."
Karaer continued, "As an airline, despite the increasing competition in Germany in 2024, we aim to maintain our market share with our variety of direct flights and service quality. On the other hand, we will continue to grow in the UK and Poland markets, where our operations are relatively new but successful."
Benelux's largest hotel
Karaer also provided information about hotel investments, saying, "We have 3 hotels in Amsterdam, including the largest hotel in Benelux, 2 in Curaçao, one of which is our own investment, and 2 in Türkiye, one in Antalya and one in Kemer. We had a good season in 2023."
He added, "We continue to renew and rejuvenate our fleet with new technology aircraft. We have also opened our second investment in the Caribbean, The Rif at Mangrove Beach in Curaçao."