Turkish Travel Trends: Insights & Opportunities

*FLIGHT DATA THROUGH 30 April, 2022

‍

Turkey has historically been a top summer destination for European and Middle Eastern travellers alike. After taking a massive hit during COVID-19 from their 2019 record year of welcoming international travellers, 2022 is predicted to be a strong year for travel to Turkey. With summer travel plans heating up, we take a deep dive into Sojern’s trends for Turkey, and what travel marketers can do to take advantage of this surge in travel intent.

‍

Both Domestic and International Travel Up

Flight searches to Turkey are well up from 2020 and 2021 volumes. What is more interesting is that those figures are also up from 2019 volumes, before COVID. Domestic searches have increased by 38% compared to January 2020 (pre-COVID levels), and international searches have increased by 58%.

‍

‍

This year alone, domestic searches increased by 115% compared to the beginning of 2022, and international searches increased by 88%.

‍

Travel Marketing Tip: It’s clear that travel recovery is on, and people are actively searching and dreaming of their next trip. Ensure you have a presence on the platforms where travellers are looking for inspiration, including Facebook and Instagram. Facebook and Instagram are an integral part of travel planning, where travel brands are inspiring and drawing in would-be travellers with their stunning beach and amenity images.

‍

Domestic Travel Dominates, but Old Favourites Returning

A full 40% of flight searches to Turkey are domestic flights, but there is a long tail of origin markets also interested in this popular summer destination. Germany has long been a top origin market for Turkey given its short flight time, and is currently the top international origin market, followed by the UK. Turkey was one of the most popular destinations for UK travellers in 2019, having attracted around 2.3 million British holidaymakers.

‍

Travel Marketing Tip: It’s important to stay top of mind with travellers considering your destination. How do you keep them engaged? Sojern uses intent data to reach people looking at your destination or might be interested in your destination based on similar searches they’ve done.

‍

Lead Times Differ Depending on Origin

Perhaps not surprisingly, those travelling domestically have a shorter lead time than those travelling further afield. For domestic travellers, we see that well over half (56%) are looking to travel in the next two weeks (15 days or sooner). For international travellers, lead times are much further out, with over a third (34%) looking to travel more than two months ahead of their search.

‍

‍

Travel Marketing Tip: To reach potential guests at different points in their travel planning, you need a multichannel marketing plan that responds to what individual travellers need. For example, you’ll want to ensure you have a metasearch presence to capture for those domestic travellers who are looking to book quickly. For those who have just started their search, capture their attention with your display ads.

For more travel insights, remember to check out our Travel Insights Dashboard.

More Articles
You Might Be Interested In

Introducing The Hotel Marketer's Playbook: Unlock the Secrets to Navigating the Marketing Funnel

Unlock the secrets to navigating the marketing funnel and drive bookings like never before.

Cookieless Marketing 101: A Destination Marketer’s Crash Course on the Cookieless World

Dive into essential strategies to navigate the cookieless world effectively.

Hoteliers in Transition: Adapting to Google's Metasearch Evolution and New DMA Regulations

Discover strategies for hoteliers navigating Google's Metasearch Evolution and new DMA regulations.

Our digital ad experience with Sojern has been nothing short of top-notch. Valencia Hotel Group tends to move quickly with various strategies, A/B testing, and consistency exploring the digital space. The creative team at Sojern works alongside with us to deliver ads that speak to our brand in a timely fashion. Sojern works very effectively with keeping our lines of communication open and being aware of our internal deadlines. When the digital ads are presented to us, the team at Valencia Hotel Group is consistently pleased with the designs delivered. They have been an amazing strategic partner.

Amy Trench

Corporate Director of Brand Marketing and PR

"My experience with Sojern design team was very smooth and efficient. The example/template provided was very helpful, to explain what we were looking for. Based on all brand elements (ie: fonts, colors, tagline…) and a selection of pictures I provided, they were able to put together a very nice and well-balanced ad selection."

Magali Simonot

Complex Marketing Manager

"It was an absolute pleasure working with the entire team at Sojern. We were looking for a simple way to reach potential guests on social media, and Sojern provided a simple solution. They answered all our questions quickly and put together well-designed ads that the entire staff was thrilled with and did it quickly."

Knute Gregory

Marketing Manager

"Sojern’s ad creative offering is great! For agencies or advertisers who do not have the ability to provide their own creative, Sojern offers complimentary ad creative with media buy-in. The ad creative process is seamless and turnaround times are exceptional."

Simran Gabri

Manager, Digital Media

"Thanks to Sojern's Reputation Manager, we can communicate with guests effectively, identify problems promptly, and resolve guest issues instantly. Instead of negative experiences, we turn them into opportunities to enhance their impression."

John Garito

Revenue Manager

Let’s Start a Conversation

We’re ready to help you take the guesswork out of your digital marketing. Contact us to tap into the travel industry’s most intelligent marketing platform.

Let's Talk

A Spotlight on Turkish Travel Trends