Turkey travel advice issued to Irish holidaymakers as Department of Foreign Affairs says terror attack threat ‘high’ and ‘avoid large crowds’.
President Recep Erdogan called the snap elections back in April, which will take place on June 24 at a time when a number of travel companies, including Jet2holidays, are reporting growing demand for capacity in the eastern Mediterranean, while GFK figures cited by Abta put bookings for Turkey packages up 83% compared to the same time last year.
While the Western Mediterranean maintains its appeal, it’s also encouraging that British travellers are returning to favourite destinations such as Turkey, Tunisia and Egypt, following a tough couple of years. Industry figures show that bookings for Turkey packages are up 83% compared to the same time last year and bookings for Egypt have increased by 55%.
According to the FCO, there will likely be rallies and demonstrations in Turkey’s major cities.
Travellers are advised to avoid large gatherings and following the advice of the local authorities.
The FCO continues to advise against all travel to Turkey’s southeastern border with Syria and against all essential travel to Sirnak, Mardin, Sanliurfa, Gaziantep, Diyarbakir, Kilis, Hatay, Siirt, Tunceli and Hakkari.
Popular tourist destinations such as the Antalya, Bodrum and Izmir regions are unaffected, although passengers have been warned to potentially expect additional security measures boarding flights to and from Turkey.
Terror attacks remain a possibility, the FCO warns, although are more likely to target the Turkish state, civilians and civil demonstrations. The FCO though states “western interests and tourists from western countries” remain a potential target.
“The Turkish authorities have successfully disrupted attack planning in the recent past and have said that security has been tightened in response to recent attacks,” reads the latest advice.
