All hail to ’golden year’
Güncelleme Tarihi:
Anatolian Agency
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Aralık 23, 2008 00:00
MARMARİS - After what was considered the golden year in yacht tourism, Marmaris expects to attract more yachts to its marinas next year. Marina managers believe the economic crisis will not change boat occupancy at the marinas.
Marmara prepares for the end of 2008, considered a golden year in yacht tourism, with even higher expectations for the coming year.
Çağlar Altuntaş, general manager of Netsel Marina in Marmaris, told the Anatolian News Agency that the increase in the number of domestic yachts and Turkey increasingly seen as an appealing destination for Western yachters have caused a boom in yacht tourism in Marmaris in 2008.
Altuntaş said the marinas were almost full and waiting lists were long as 2008 had been a very successful year.
"We had a 35 percent increase in sales per square meter compared to last year," said Altuntaş. "Boat entry into the marina increased by 100 percent." He said they aimed to keep this occupancy rate in 2009 and he did not expect next year to be different from the last.
"If the crisis gets too big, there may be a decrease in maintenance and repair sales, but not in boat occupancy," he said. Altuntaş said the global crisis may affect yacht sales, but existing yachts needing marinas remained and they were hopeful for 2009 as Turkey’s industry benefited from being at near capacity.
’We cannot meet the demand’
Ercan Güneştutar, general manager of Marmaris Martı Marina and president of the Sea Tourism Union, said nearly all the marinas in Marmaris were full for the whole year.
"We had problems because of an insufficient capacity. We are 100 percent full, we have no vacancies," said Güneştutar. Güneştutar, like Altuntaş, said the global crisis’ may affect yacht sales, but there would not be a decrease in boat occupancy as unsold yachts would be kept in marinas anyway.
"A large number of new yachts will sail here next year. We are going to have problems answering their demand," Güneştutar said. "New marinas are being built in Göcek and Didim, maybe this will mean we can catch our breaths."
Güneştutar said 5,000 new moorings were needed to answer the demand for next year and in the long term 25,000 should be added to meet demand for the next decade.
Şener Erdem, general manager of Marmaris Yacht Marina, considered the largest marina in the Mediterranean region, said they had been operating at 100 percent capacity for the whole year, and offered services to 800 yachts at sea and 1,300 in moorings. Erdem said many yachters were waiting and others had to change their route to other countries.
Marmaris, a district full of world famous natural wonders, houses approximately 250 bays, four marinas and nearly 3,500 moorings. Representatives of the industry said new marinas could not be built and existing ones could not be enlarged due to a lack of space and bureaucratic difficulties. Yacht tourism consists of 25 percent of Turkey’s tourism industry and may reach 40 percent if 20,000 new moorings are built, according to officials.
Çağlar Altuntaş, general manager of Netsel Marina in Marmaris, told the Anatolian News Agency that the increase in the number of domestic yachts and Turkey increasingly seen as an appealing destination for Western yachters have caused a boom in yacht tourism in Marmaris in 2008.
Altuntaş said the marinas were almost full and waiting lists were long as 2008 had been a very successful year.
"We had a 35 percent increase in sales per square meter compared to last year," said Altuntaş. "Boat entry into the marina increased by 100 percent." He said they aimed to keep this occupancy rate in 2009 and he did not expect next year to be different from the last.
"If the crisis gets too big, there may be a decrease in maintenance and repair sales, but not in boat occupancy," he said. Altuntaş said the global crisis may affect yacht sales, but existing yachts needing marinas remained and they were hopeful for 2009 as Turkey’s industry benefited from being at near capacity.
’We cannot meet the demand’
Ercan Güneştutar, general manager of Marmaris Martı Marina and president of the Sea Tourism Union, said nearly all the marinas in Marmaris were full for the whole year.
"We had problems because of an insufficient capacity. We are 100 percent full, we have no vacancies," said Güneştutar. Güneştutar, like Altuntaş, said the global crisis’ may affect yacht sales, but there would not be a decrease in boat occupancy as unsold yachts would be kept in marinas anyway.
"A large number of new yachts will sail here next year. We are going to have problems answering their demand," Güneştutar said. "New marinas are being built in Göcek and Didim, maybe this will mean we can catch our breaths."
Güneştutar said 5,000 new moorings were needed to answer the demand for next year and in the long term 25,000 should be added to meet demand for the next decade.
Şener Erdem, general manager of Marmaris Yacht Marina, considered the largest marina in the Mediterranean region, said they had been operating at 100 percent capacity for the whole year, and offered services to 800 yachts at sea and 1,300 in moorings. Erdem said many yachters were waiting and others had to change their route to other countries.
Marmaris, a district full of world famous natural wonders, houses approximately 250 bays, four marinas and nearly 3,500 moorings. Representatives of the industry said new marinas could not be built and existing ones could not be enlarged due to a lack of space and bureaucratic difficulties. Yacht tourism consists of 25 percent of Turkey’s tourism industry and may reach 40 percent if 20,000 new moorings are built, according to officials.