İstanbul, Turkey - July 21, 2024

Turkish tourists have been flocking to neighboring Greece as rising inflation and living costs have driven holidaymakers to seek cost-effective vacation options.

Turkey has been grappling with soaring inflation in recent years, with its catering and hotel industries bearing the brunt. In June, inflation in Turkey hit 71.6 percent. The latest data from the Turkish Statistical Institute shows that prices of restaurants and hotels in the country surged by 90.67 percent year-on-year.

Zafer Alten is a businessman living in Istanbul. Every year he spends holiday with his family in south Turkey. But the soaring costs have seen him turning to Greece due to lower prices for both food and accommodation.

Greece's implementation of a visa-on-arrival policy for Turkish tourists visiting 10 islands from April 1 this year has also fueled the tourism boom.

As a result, a growing number of travel companies have seen sharp rise in bookings for Greek travel packages compared to last year.

Shotlist:
Istanbul, Turkey - July 21, 2024:
1. Various of businessman Zafer Alten talking to employees, employee with pencil and papers in hand;
2. SOUNDBITE (English) Zafer Alten, businessman (starting from shot 1/ending with shot 3):
"Because of the price, especially food and accommodation, it's more cheaper. If you go to restaurant in the southern part of Turkey, you pay, for example, per person, approximately 50 or 80 euros. But if we go to Greece, that amount you can have four people [for] a dinner.";
3. Various of Zafer Alten talking to employee; screen showing travel website;
4. Various of people at market;
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Uğur Alkaya, assistant general manager, Turkish travel company (staring with shot 4/ending with shot 6):
"This year, the gap it became really huge. From last year to this year, we received 100% of increments[in orders].";
6. Various of man cooking Turkish food;
7. Various of restaurant outdoor dining area, empty seats.

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