Natural Environment, People, History, Tourist Activities and Heritage Resources of Turkey - Literature review Example

Tourism in Turkey Student’s Name Subject Professor University/Institution Location Date Tourism in Turkey Map of Turkey Introduction In Turkey, tourism is mainly concentrated on a number of seaside resorts, historical sites along with its Mediterranean and Aegean Sea coasts. The country has turned out to be a famous global destination for spa, health care and culture tourism in the past few years. Last year, it attracted over 31.5 million tourists from different foreign countries and thus, took 6th position in rankings for most famous tourist destinations across the globe. Istanbul forms one of the most significant tourist spots both in Turkey, as well as in the world. The city has several hotels along with other tourist-related sectors which cater for the needs of not only vacationers, but also visiting professionals (Hall 2006, p.271). This research work will explore Turkey as a tourist spot with reference to its natural environment, people, history, tourist activities and heritage resources. It will also analyse the impacts of tourism on the Turkish society. In addition, the research will identify the accommodation facilities and gastronomic experiences that are available to tourists, as well as means of transport used by tourists to access the country and within the country. Natural environment’s features According to Holden (2008, p.87), the long and different sea coasts, lakes and high mountains alongside several religious, archaeological and historical sites in Turkey, gives it an unbeatable tourism potential. The various regions in Turkey experience different types of climate. The coastal region’s weather system contrasts the system found in the interior parts of the country. The Mediterranean and Aegean coasts have moderately hot, dry summers and cold, rainy winters. Moreover, the mountains surrounding the coast hinder Mediterranean impacts from stretching to the inland, which gives Turkey’s interior a continental climate consisting of distinct seasons. Such a climate presents tourists with an opportunity to enjoy different tourist activities, which vary with season. For instance, during winter, ice skating is a favourite tourist activity in Turkey, while in summer, water sports and swimming are common activities. The Central Anatolia area is also an interesting region for tourists. Surrounded by folded mountains, the area consists of plateau and lake basins as well as woodlands. As a result, the natural setting presents tourists with a good landscape for mountain climbing, trekking and fishing activities in the lake. In addition, the region receives adequate rainfall, which favours agricultural activities and thus, is highly populated with Turkish local communities. Type of society Kandiyoti & Saktanber (2001, p.11) maintain that, the Turkish society consists of two main ethnic communities, with Turkish and Kurdish communities forming 80 and 20 percent of the total population respectively. The first and official language in Turkey is Turkish, which is spoken by about 90 percent of the country’s population. Kurdish is a minor language that is used by 6 percent of the society. In addition, Arabic is used by 1.2 percent of the population, most of whom are bilingual Turkish and Arabic speakers. Other languages include Greek, Circassian, Judezmo and Armenian. Islam forms the dominant religion in Turkey even though the country is intensely secular. The religion originated from Saudi Arabia, where Muhammad is viewed as the final emissary of God to bring mankind’s revelation. One of the religious obligations for the religion is praying five times every day, with Friday being regarded as the holy day. Additionally, in social setting, a firm hand shake is the official way of greeting in Turkish society. However, relations and friends greet one another by giving kisses on the cheeks. When it comes to elders, respect is expressed through a kiss on their right hand and placing the hand on one’s forehead. Heritage resources Goreme is a historical site of Turkey in Cappadocia that is situated among fairy smokestack rock formations. Its former names include Korama, Matiana, Avcilar and Maccan. After the region was nominated as a significant tourist destination, its name changed to Göreme due to practical reasons. People settled back in Göreme in the Roman era. Christianity was at the time the popular religion in the area, which is shown by the numerous rock churches, which can be seen to date. Cappadocia is also a historical site in the middle of Anatolia. The site’s name was customarily mentioned in Christian works throughout Turkey’s history. At the present, it is still extensively used in international tourism to describe a place of extraordinary natural wonders, particularly typified by fairy smokestacks and an exceptional cultural and historical heritage. Moreover, Hierapolis is a primeval Greco-Roman town in Phrygia situated near hot springs, southwest of Anatolia. Its remains are near the current Pamukkale in Turkey. People have been using the springs as a bath place as from the 2nd century, to relieve their ailments (Kandiyoti & Saktanber 2001, p.13). Tourism history Prior to the 1980s, tourism in Turkey was far much behind as compared to its counterparts in the Mediterranean region. As a result, tourists had a tendency of staying for shorter periods and having lower expenditures in Turkey than in other countries like Greece, Portugal and Spain. In the early 1980s, efforts by the Ozal’s government to promote tourism resulted in a dramatic change. Tourists’ number increased rapidly throughout the 1980s and also in the early 1990s. Hence, Turkey was in a position to please tourists from several different countries. In 1983, Turkey hosted an approximate of 1.3 million guests including business visitors and 2.1 million visitors in the following year. By 1987, the number of tourists to Turkey had risen to approximately 2.9 million and to about 7 million by 1992 (Photius Coutsoukis 2004). Photius Coutsoukis (2004) further asserts that, even though Turkish revenue from tourism in 1985 went up to US$770 million, and to US$3.6 billion in 1992, the tourism sector has been adversely affected political, environmental and economic problems. The disagreement on the nuclear power site’s calamity at Chernobyl, economic issues in Europe as well as in the Middle East and terrorist activities by Kurdish rebels discouraged tourism in Turkey. Currently, the country is trying to overcome tourism obstacles through improvement of domestic services such as accommodation facilities and formation of resort villages. Factors influencing tourists to visit Turkey Motivational factors These denote the sources of inspiration for people to do something. One of the main motivational factor for tourists to choose Turkey as their holiday destination is the desire for fun and leading active lives. Turkey has different tourist activities such as canoeing, skiing, swimming, diving, hiking and mountain climbing. Hence, travellers get a chance to have lots of fun and remain active throughout their holiday period (Bramwell 2004, p.69). Push factors Bramwell (2004, p.72) defines push factors as social, demographic, economic and political aspects that promote tourism by forcing people to move from their home countries to another country. One of the main push factors is increasing income level for people especially in Asia and Europe and thus people have money to go for vacations. Moreover, through advanced technology, people across the globe are able to view adverts on tourist sites in Turkey. Pull factors According to Hall (2006, p.275), these are features in a country that attract tourists. After 1980, Turkish government started promoting tourism through improvement of domestic tourism facilities like accommodation. As a result, travellers started having interest to visit the country. Additionally, Turkey has a rich history, culture and is also famous for different delicious dishes and thus tourists take adventures in different parts of the country. Tourist activities Bigloveturkey.com (2012) claims that, as a tourist destination Turkey gives tourists culture, sports, and art that match the value of their money. It has a very long coastline and thus it offers swimming, water rafting, yachting, and boating, hiking, hot air ballooning and biking. Underwater diving is a common sport for the warmer seasons where tourists get to see sunken ships and underwater caverns. With several different areas surrounded by sea, travelers have a number of different places for diving such as Kas, Kemer, Saro and Bodrum. Moreover,the several rivers in Turkey present travelers with great avenues for canoeing, water rafting, and skiing. Such rivers include Artivin Coruh, Dalman River and Rize Firtina. Recently, global golf courses like Country and Klassis Golf have been opened up permitting people from different parts of the globe to play. Hunting is also a common tourist activity in Turkey, with hunting tours being planned for by tour agencies. Turkey has numerous mountains offering winter sports such as skiing, hiking and mountain climbing for active tourists. Winter sports in Turkey are offered by climbing sites like Agri-Mount Ararat and Kayseri-Mount-Erciyes. Besides, there are thrilling air sports including paragliding, ballooning, parachuting and delta wings. Turkey has about 40,000 caverns and caves to explore. Active explorers can get to discover exciting geological formations in the Antayla Caverns and Zongulduk Caves. Furthermore, there are more than 1,000 thermal springs in the country most of which are situated in the Aegean Mamara areas. Travelers come to have fun in the various resorts constructed around the thermal springs whose water is believed to heal various diseases (Bigloveturkey.com 2012). Impacts of tourism on people’s lives in Turkey Crompton (2008, p.120) argues that, tourism in Turkey has different impacts on the society including economic, cultural and environmental impacts. Economically, tourism in Turkey enables it to earn foreign exchange from the expenditure of tourists on accommodation, food and transport. Growth of the tourism industry generates employment opportunities for the locals in the hospitality sector. However, income from tourism only benefits investors and landowners while residents suffer from high living cost. In terms of culture, tourism leads to changes in beliefs, cultural practices and values. This is more evident in changed mode of eating, dressing, recreational and entertainment activities. Tourism in Turkey also results in environmental degradation through littering of parks and other recreational joints. Accommodation facilities Liu & Var (2009, p.193) maintains that, Turkey is turning out to be a popular, ideal holiday destination for sun-seeking and fun-seeking holidaymakers. Accommodation is superb throughout the state and tourists can decide to use hotels, villas or apartments, according to the type of their holiday. Villas in Turkey are available for renting in every main resort, and range from simple, traditional villas to ultra contemporary and luxurious villas. Traditional villas form a great option for tourists to stay in a place that gives an authentic feeling for the heritage and culture of Turkey. Furthermore, food is an outstanding feature in Turkish holiday. Local restaurants give the paramount worth for money by serving a mouth-watering variety of traditional delicacies, from lamb kebabs to mezze platters. Accordingly, every Villa is usually equipped with superb cooking facilities. In addition, cave hotels are available in Cappadocia. Means of transport used by tourists According to Government of Turkey (2011, p.5), the policy of Turkish government is to back up and encourage growth of the country’s tourism sector through advocating for private investment and improving infrastructure. The country’s tourism strategy for 2023 includes plans to be made concerning the current transport system in order to aid in easy access and movement of tourists to and within the country. The most commonly used means of transport by tourists include road, air, railway and sea. Road transport is the dominant and the most suitable mode of transport for door-to-door delivery in Turkey. Road transport network is grouped into state roads, provincial roads and motorways which facilitate movement within the country. Additionally, Turkey has government-controlled railway systems which are both conventional and high speed lines. The railway systems operate both domestically and internationally. Tourists in Turkey can use railway to other countries like Hungary, Germany, Romani, Pakistan and Bulgaria. Air transport is also used with several airlines operating transit, domestic and international flights. Tourists from different parts of the world use air transport to access Turkey. Moreover, Turkey is situated at Asia and Europe’s crossroads and thus sea transport is used to transport both cargo and tourists. Cruise ships are the commonly used water transport modes by tourists (Government of Turkey 2011, p.13). Gastronomic experiences Drawing from López-Guzmán & Sánchez-Cañizares (2011, p.23), tourists who visit Turkey get to enjoy a wide range of dishes, which is available in eating joints such as hotels, restaurants, cafes, supermarkets as well as fast food joints. Turkish cuisines are famous for their similarities to Arabic, Indian, Middle Eastern and Persian cooking. Similar to other Mediterranean foods, Turkish cooking uses olive oil and vegetables as the key ingredients in a bigger percentage of its dishes. In addition, the primary Turkish recipes range from vegetables side foods to meat dishes. Aubergines, which have over 40 ways of preparing it, form the most preferred vegetable in the country. López-Guzmán & Sánchez-Cañizares (2011, p.25), further say that, lamb meat, which stems from Turkey’s pastoral heritage, is one of the most well-liked meats in the country. Döner kebab is a commonly eaten street food that is prepared from lamb, and Turkey's most known international food. Moreover, Turkish dishes are prepared using a variety of spices including cilantro, saffron and caraway seeds. Dairy foodstuffs also play an important role in Turkish cooking. Yoghurt is an essential ingredient in the country’s cuisine. It is also used in preparing soups, along with cucumber, as a meat condiment as well as creams’ base. Furthermore, Turkish drinks form a central part of the culture and dining scene of the country. Ayran, a yoghurt fluid mixed with salt and lemon juice is the most popular drink for hot days. Besides, Raki is a strong popular aniseed alcoholic drink which is normally taken after meals. However, tea and coffee are the favorites of Turkish people. Promoting tourism in Turkey The tourism sector is forming one of Turkey’s significant sectors. This is because of its contribution to the country’s economy through foreign exchange and creation of employment. The aim of promoting Turkey’s tourism sector is to create more awareness of its tourist sites and activities in order to attract more travellers to facilitate the growth of the sector (Liu & Var 2009, p.196). Conclusion Turkey is an ideal tourism destination for different types of travellers. This is because; it has a superb natural environment, heritage resources and history that are of interest to travellers. In addition, it has a wide range of tourist activities and thus, all tourists can find an activity that is most appropriate for them. Moreover, Turkey has excellent accommodation facilities as well as different modes of transport for accessing and touring different parts of the country. Lastly, Turkish cooking is brilliant with different delicious foods being served at different eating joints at affordable prices. List of References Read More