Tourism Minister Ersoy’s Important Statements on Fethiye, Foreigners, and Rentals

Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy held an important meeting with tourism professionals in Fethiye. During this meeting, he was asked many questions, to which the minister responded carefully.

From hotel operators to gulet owners, paragliding pilots to diving associations, tourism agencies to entertainment center and restaurant operators, everyone participated.

AIMING FOR THIRD PLACE IN TOURISM

The Minister firstly stated: “Friends, we are doing our part. But you also need to do yours. It’s not enough to say the state should do it. Look, we aim for third place in the world. For this to happen, you need to adhere to world and European standards. Please take care.”

VILLA AND AIRBNB TOURISM

Some of the questions were about villas operated in tourism areas and new regulations regarding Airbnb. The Minister shared the following on this issue:

“I’m not against villa tourism and Airbnb, as long as everything is recorded. Those who rent out their homes in apartments must, of course, obtain the approval of other residents…”

MARMARIS-FETHIYE GULF CLEANING

As you know, our candidate for Mayor of Muğla (AK Party) had said that ships would come for cleaning the gulfs. He kept his promise. The ship in Marmaris has started working. A ship from Çanakkale will also come to Fethiye in a few days.

DIFFICULTY IN OBTAINING RESIDENCY FOR FOREIGNERS

A tourism professional asked: “Many foreigners from Antalya to Fethiye used to get residency permits here. They were an important source of income for the region’s businesses in winter. But now, for some reason, it’s becoming harder to get these permits. Is there a reason for this? Those who can’t get residency permits are going to other countries.”

Tourism Minister Ersoy gave a clear answer: “Those who deposit 1.5 times the minimum wage into the bank every month can obtain a tourist residence permit with the approval of the relevant institution.”

Another tourism professional continued: “But Mr. Minister, now they are also banned from opening accounts in banks.”

Ersoy turned to the Provincial Director of Tourism and said: “Let’s look into this matter. I will also talk to our Minister of Interior.”

PARAGLIDING PILOTS AND DIVING TOURISM

Another tourism professional from Babadağ spoke about the issues related to paragliding. Another requested that diving companies be recognized as tourism operators. Another suggested stopping the increasing coastal facilities on beaches and including them in a plan. Some said they couldn’t find space in the port to pick up and drop off passengers.

During all these questions and problems, Minister Ersoy was constantly “noting down” and scheduling appointments with his private secretary. Ersoy solves any problem that can be resolved within standards right away. Perhaps this is one of the most important reasons for the success of tourism in recent years.

WE AIM TO ACHIEVE IN 4 YEARS WHAT HAS BEEN DONE IN ARCHAEOLOGY IN 60 YEARS

The Minister says this about the issue: “We aim to complete in the next 4 years what has been done in Turkey in relation to archaeology in 60 years.” Despite all the difficulties, he had said they would achieve the tourism revenue target of 54 billion dollars, and they did.

Now, he says the goal is third place in the world. He says, “60 million tourists, 60 billion dollars in revenue.” Let’s see if this goal will also be achieved, we will see.