Turkey's tourism investments gain momentum in first 9 months of 2017

The number of hotels and similar facilities granted with construction licenses in the first nine months of this year hit 1,132, with a 43 percent increase from 2015.

According to the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat), the number of touristic facilities declined to 822 in 2015, but that number has since increased.

Of the 1,132 facilities that have been granted with a construction between January and September this year, 1,001 were under the private sector, 126 were being constructed with state investments and five were recorded as social investments.

The Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey's (TOBB) Tourism Council President Osman Ayık said it was important to track in what stages these facilities were at the moment and when they would be operational.

He recalled that in terms of tourism, 2014 was the most important year in more than 35 years. That year Turkey received more than 40 million visitors and $32 billion in revenue.

"We expect to host 32 million visitors and post $22 billion in revenue this year. 2015 and 2016 were difficult for the sector. However, we are hopeful that 2018 will be better than this year," Ayık said.

He said that the number of licenses did not mean that the investment work was done and added that Turkey's tourism sector needed serious planning about the locations and facilities to improve the country's capacity to host tourists.

"It may not be necessary for provinces like Antalya and Istanbul, but more investments should be made in places like Van and Dıyarbakır," he concluded.