High airfares and transport costs deal a heavy blow to tourism in Northern Cyprus

Erkan Tolun, former chairman of the North Cyprus Association of Travel Agents (KITSAB), commented on the prolonged crisis in the tourism sector of the TRNC. He said that the main reason for the sharp increase in the price of holiday packages to the island is the critically high cost of airline tickets and overall transport expenses. According to him, the current expense of air travel is hurting domestic tourism and significantly reducing the flow of foreign visitors.

Tolun noted that the new advertising project «Ada Kıbrıs» (Island Cyprus) is certainly important for promoting the country’s tourism potential on the international stage, but advertising alone is not enough at the moment. Without solving the key problem of lowering the cost of flights to the TRNC, the sector will not be able to develop sustainably. The expert stressed that the government urgently needs to review its current air transport policy and introduce more comprehensive support measures in order to make vacations in Northern Cyprus competitive.