site.btaUPDATED Turkish Tourists Up by 22% in December Alone, Minister Dinkova Says

Statistics show that in December alone there was an increase of 22% of Turkish tourists, Tourism Minister Zaritza Dinkova said at the beginning of a round table on the role of the state and tourist associations in increasing bilateral tourism between Bulgaria and Turkiye, which is held in Bansko. Minister Dinkova said that it is extremely important that this trend continues and is facilitated.

The Minister of Tourism said that talks are underway with representatives of the Turkish side, as well as with the Bulgarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Interior in relation to facilitating and speeding up the process of issuing visas for Turkish tourists. In this regard, the Ministry of Tourism has an idea which will be proposed and which should ease the issuance of visas, Dinkova said.

She expressed hope that Bulgaria’s joining Schengen by air would enable those Turkish tourists who have Schengen visas to enter the country more freely and easily.  

Referring to the tourists from different countries, Minister Dinkova commented that after the crisis with the Israeli tourist market, the advertising of Bulgarian tourism was immediately redirected to the neighboring markets and pointed out that all visitors to Bulgaria are equally important and valuable.

The round table is organized by the Bansko tourist business union and aims to outline development goals to set a higher level for tourism, Malin Bistrin, chairman of the local tourist union, said at the beginning of the forum. Participants in Saturday's round table are representatives of the tourism business from Bansko and the region. The Chairman of the Board of the Bulgarian-Turkish Chamber of Commerce and Industry, representatives of the tourism business and the media in Turkiye also took part in it.

Bulgarian tourists take much more advantage of the opportunity to visit Turkiye than Turkish tourists come to Bulgaria, Bulgarian-Turkish Chamber of Commerce and Industry Chairman Burhan Nemutlu told BTA after the round table in Bansko.

"I know that Bulgaria complies with Brussels directives, but there are things we can easily solve. I have always said that it is important to take one small step. This problem can be solved very easily - this small step to increase the tourist flow from Turkiye to Bulgaria is the issuance of multiple-entry visas," said Nemutlu. According to him, the interest in Bansko continues not only because of the unique nature, but also because of the product provided by local tourism businesses in terms of price and quality. 

Therefore, we could attract more tourists from Turkiye, Nemultu said and pointed out that according to journalists from the Turkish media, tourism in Bulgaria has tapped only 10% of Turkiye's potential.