Attending the World Tourism Exchange ITB Berlin Congress, Cyprus Health Tourism Council President, Deputy Dr. Ahmet Savaşan stated that they had the opportunity to discuss all aspects of tourism in the sessions attended by 400 internationally known high-level speakers and watched by 24 thousand people.
Savaşan emphasized that as travelers turn to “revenge tourism” in 2023, the expenditures will approach $1.4 trillion in 2019, but the number of international tourists, which was 1.8 billion in 2019, will remain at the level of 1.6 billion.
2023 WILL BE THE YEAR OF RECOVERY…
Stating that there were many discussions at the ITB Berlin Congress on how to achieve a sustainable and successful future transformation in tourism, Dr. Ahmet Savaşan said, “In the sessions we attended, experts predicted that 2023 will be a year with inflation and recession on the one hand, and that financial stability will be an important test with interest increases and deterioration in demand, on the other hand, tourism that has come to a standstill during the pandemic and whose debts have grown like a mountain. reveals that the industry will enter a recovery phase as travelers continue to turn to “revenge tourism”.
A SELF-SUPPLIED ECONOMIC STRUCTURE CAN BE ESTABLISHED WITH TOURISM…
Experts in the tourism sector, travelers’ travel purposes and expectations from travel; Pointing out that everything from transportation and accommodation preferences is changing rapidly, Ahmet Savaşan said, “When we look at the changing trends, we see that travelers are shifting from popular and crowded destinations such as Paris and Rome to exploration routes, and they are turning to holiday, camping and bungalow accommodation options in touch with nature. Considering the changes taking place in the world, it is obvious that Northern Cyprus has a significant potential to meet the expectations of travelers. If the Ministry of Tourism and Environment and the stakeholders combine their experience and strength, this potential can be used easily and a self-sufficient economic structure can be established in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.
TREND, DIFFERENT CULTURES, NEW EXPERIENCES…
Dr. Ahmet Savaşan stated that three new main trends have come to the fore in the tourism sector, which is predicted to rise in 2023 and offers significant opportunities for Northern Cyprus:
“Back to nature” arising from the increasing interest in accommodation options such as bungalows, tents, caravans in nature and nature activities such as rafting, trekking, mountain biking, paragliding;
“Different cultures, new experiences” as travelers want to experience a trip where they will experience culture shock and exotic experiences;
“Increased price sensitivity” as travelers will continue to prioritize travel in 2023, when global economic uncertainty reigns, but take extra care to get the most out of their travel budget.
WE DISCUSSED HEALTH TOURISM WITH ITS MANY ASPECTS…
Pointing out that the Tourism Exchange ITB Berlin hosted much more medical and health tourism representatives with the M2 Health Travel organization this year, Ahmet Savaşan said that many medical and health tourism representatives from Germany, Turkey and all over the world attended the sessions held in the specially created congress area. He explained that they discussed many aspects of health tourism with a health tourism expert.
EXPECTATIONS IN HEALTH TOURISM WILL ALSO CHANGE…
Stating that in the sessions where Health Tourism was discussed, it was revealed that the demands in the world increased by more than 30 percent in 2022 compared to 2021, Ahmet Savaşan said that it is foreseen that there will be a change in the expectations in health tourism in 2023.
NORTH CYPRUS WILL GO MUCH FURTHER IN HEALTH TOURISM…
In the presentations made, the experts said that the demand for medical tourism will continue to increase in 2023, however, at the point of protecting and improving health, the tourists have shown that they want to try more exciting alternatives by getting bored of the traditional wellness trips. Emphasizing that this new trend is among health tourism alternatives, “Sylvotherapy”, also known as fruit harvesting and forest bathing, which is said to associate a person’s energy with the forest, Ahmet Savaşan said: Our advantages in this point show that Northern Cyprus can go much further in health tourism.”