Risk & Crisis Management in Tourism Sector:
Recovery from Crisis
in the OIC Member Countries
80
visitation despite Turkey’s outstanding value-for-money as hoteliers and ground operators offer
heavy discounts in order to entice tourists back.
Table 4.2: International Visitor Arrivals and Foreign Exchange Earnings - Turkey
Year Arrivals (‘000) Receipts (US$ billion)
1995 7,083 4.957
1996 7,966 5.650
1997 9,040 7.002
1998 8,960 7.177
1999 6,893 5.203
2000 9,586 7.636
2001 10,783 10.067
2002 12,790 11.901
2003 13,341 13.203
2004 16,826 15,888
2005 20,273 20,760
2006 18,916 19.137
2007 26,122 21,662
2008 29,792 26.446
2009 30,187 26.331
2010 31,364 26.318
2011 34,654 30.302
2012 35,698 31.566
2013 37,795 36.192
2014 39,811 38.766
2015 39,478 35.413
2016 25,000 22.1
Sources: UNWTO Yearbook of Tourism Statistics, Compendium of Tourism Statistics and data files
4.2.2. Crises Affecting Turkish Tourism
Specific crises that have affected Turkish tourism over the last two decades fall into a range of
categories including natural disasters, political unrest and disease outbreaks.
 1999: Izmit Earthquake – This occurred in northwestern Turkey and affected a
densely populated area, resulting in the death of over 17,000 people and rendering
around half a million people homeless.
 2003-2011: Second Gulf War - There is no clear evidence of any impact on tourism in
Turkey during this period, with steady growth in arrivals, from 13.34 million visitors in
2003 to 34.64 million in 2011 (UNWTO, 2012).
 2006: Avian Flu - This global pandemic had a significant impact on tourism to Turkey
with international visitor arrivals declining by 7% to 18.9 million from the previous high