Inflation has doubled, making foreign vacations more attractive

Tourism professionals state that domestic tourists paying higher prices for the same vacation is due to early booking. However, an employee in Turkey does not have the chance to determine when to take their annual leave. According to Labor Law No. 4857, which regulates the responsibilities and rights of workers and employers in Turkey, the periods during which annual leave can be used throughout the year are determined by the employer.

Article 60 of Labor Law No. 4857:
“The periods during which annual paid leave will be used throughout the year according to the nature of the work carried out, how and by whom the leave will be granted or whether it will be subject to a queue, the measures that must be taken by the employer for the annual leave to be beneficial, the procedures regarding the use of leave, and the form of records that must be kept by the employer shall be shown by a regulation to be prepared by the Ministry of Labor and Social Security.”

The price difference
In May 2021, prices for the same five-night stay at a hotel in Antalya were published for both Turkey and Germany on social media.
According to this, while the price for five nights in a room at the hotel was 618 euros, or just over 6 thousand liras in Germany, the price in Turkey was seen to be 15 thousand 959 TL.

Due to rising inflation and the increase in foreign exchange rates, vacationing in Turkey is much more expensive than it used to be. For this reason, citizens now prefer international vacations, which they find much more advantageous. According to research by Avantajix.com, even if you book early, the cost of a 5-night all-inclusive vacation in holiday regions like Antalya and Bodrum is 30-40 thousand TL. Even if you say, “A hotel is a luxury for me, I will stay in a guesthouse,” you still have to pay at least 10-15 thousand TL for accommodation for the same period. When the cost of food is added to this, the cost to the individual is not much lower than that of hotels.

While domestic accommodation prices are constantly increasing due to the effect of inflation, the fact that the increase in foreign exchange rates has lagged behind inflation has made international travel much more attractive.

MOST AFFORDABLE INTERNATIONAL DESTINATIONS

So much so that the same price is paid for a 5-day all-inclusive beachfront hotel vacation in Bodrum or Antalya as for a one-week beachfront hotel vacation in Morocco, Tunisia, or Egypt. Moreover, while separate fees must be paid for transportation in Turkey, round-trip airfare to these countries is included in the tour price.

While Greece and its islands are also among the alternatives for affordable international vacations, there are also destinations where the tour price is even lower than the cost of a plane ticket. Serbia-Belgrade, Albania-Tirana, Montenegro, and Georgia-Batumi are among the most preferred affordable international tour routes.

VACATION AND TRAVEL PURCHASES ARE MORE ADVANTAGEOUS ONLINE

Avantajix.com Digital Marketing Director Sevda Köseibiş stated that although prices in TL have risen significantly, the fact that the prices of products sold in foreign currency have remained the same has made international vacations more affordable.

Köseibiş provided the following information:

“A vacation is a necessity, but its cost has now become quite high. That is why people have started to conduct very comprehensive research to find the most affordable vacation. The number of people purchasing their vacations online has increased significantly. Last year, online vacation and travel sales in dollar terms increased by 167 percent, exceeding 10 billion US dollars. We expect the increase to be at a record level this year. Compared to previous years, the number of people purchasing international tours by visiting vacation and travel sites via Avantajix has also doubled.”

News Source: 12punto