30
Jun
2016
By Calvin at 09:08 GMT, 7 years ago
I’ve just come back from a wonderful two weeks stay in Kalkan in south-west Turkey. We flew back on the same day as that dreadful terrorist attack on Istanbul’s main airport, Atatürk Havalimanı. Fortunately for us we were using the very small regional airport in Dalaman for our journey where passenger numbers are very low and security levels are fairly standard. There was certainly no noticeable increase in security levels at Dalaman when we flew back.
The effect of this year’s terrorist attacks by the PKK, Kurdistan Freedom Falcons (TAK) and Daesh (and the shooting down of the Russian plane) has certainly had a massive negative impact on Turkeys’ holiday industry. During our first week in Kalkan the place was like a ghost town with local businesses struggling to earn a living from the many fewer Brits who felt safe enough to travel. Things picked up a little during our second week, but still the numbers are way down on last year with estimates of 40 to 50% reductions. From our conversations with local business folk and fellow tourists it is clear that the vast majority of visitors were returning tourists and first time travellers to the destination along this particular coast (Fethiye, Patara, Kalkan KaÅŸ) were the ones who were missing.
For those of you who have not chosen south-west Turkey as a holiday destination for fear of being caught up in some terrorist action I think it is worth pointing out that the region is a very long way from Istanbul and Turkey’s capital, Ankara, and it is many hundreds of miles away from the borders with Syria and Iraq, all of which have been the main focus of attention for both Daesh, the PKK and related terrorist groups.
The current advice from our Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) website (since Tuesday’s bombings in Istanbul) states the following:
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) advise against all travel to within 10 km of the border with Syria and to the city of Diyarbakir.
The FCO advise against all but essential travel to:
- the remaining areas of Sirnak, Mardin, Sanliurfa, Gaziantep, Diyarbakir, Kilis and Hatay provinces
- Siirt, Tunceli and Hakkari
Security force operations against the PKK and related groups are ongoing in the Sur district of Diyarbakir. The FCO advise against all travel to the city of Diyarbakir. Similar operations have taken place in Sirnak and Hakkari. You should take extreme care in these areas. See Safety and security
Over 2,500,000 British nationals visit Turkey every year. It’s generally safe to travel but you should take additional safety precautions. You should be alert to your surroundings and remain vigilant in crowded places popular with tourists.
For further travel warnings please visit the FCO website travel advice pages
Although we were naturally concerned about this years’ terrorist attacks in Turkey we took heed of our government’s advice and concluded that the statistical chance of being caught up in an attack was no greater than a visit to London or Paris. We also enjoyed Kalkan too much the last time to stay away and am glad that we have done our little bit to support the local people there during this difficult time.
