Museums and archaeological sites to adopt new visitor system

ANKARA

Türkiye is modernizing its cultural heritage sites, with Culture and Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy confirming plans to install a next-generation visitor system at 216 locations by year-end 2026.

“With the new system, which we will implement with a domestic and national infrastructure, we will bring about a comprehensive transformation in many areas, from smart ticketing and digital visitor management to data security and new-generation museum applications,” Ersoy said.

According to a statement from the ministry, Ersoy received a delegation from Türk Telekom as part of efforts to create a new-generation visitor experience at museums and archaeological sites.

The meeting discussed the current status and implementation schedule of projects being carried out under a cooperation protocol signed between the Culture and Tourism Ministry and Türk Telekom.

Ersoy said in a post on his NSosyal account that they exchanged views on the implementation schedule and next steps for the project covering 216 museums and archaeological sites across Türkiye.

He said the project would bring cultural heritage together with the opportunities offered by technology and provide visitors with a faster, safer and higher-quality experience.

The project will establish an integrated digital structure covering areas ranging from ticket office operations and visitor services to data security and museum shops.

The new system will include smart ticketing, multichannel digital payments, artificial intelligence-supported data analytics, digital visitor management, audio guides, digital archiving, augmented reality and virtual reality applications.

Fiber infrastructure, widespread wireless internet systems and 5G integration will also be introduced to provide faster and more secure services to visitors. Strategic data related to cultural heritage will be stored on domestic infrastructure within Türkiye.

The digital transformation will also cover museum shops, cafeterias, sales areas and other visitor services, rather than being limited to entrance and ticketing systems.

Museum shops will offer products reflecting Türkiye’s cultural heritage, including traditional Turkish handicrafts, Turkish coffee and Turkish delight, Turkish carpets and traditional decorative arts. The ministry also aims to expand overseas sales of products supplied by artists certified as Intangible Cultural Heritage Bearers and traditional handicraft masters.

Under the new system, existing Müzekart cards that are still valid will remain unchanged. Once their validity expires, citizens will be able to use their Turkish identity cards as Müzekart.

After paying the Müzekart fee through e-Government or a mobile application, citizens will be able to enter museums and archaeological sites without waiting in line at ticket offices by having their identity cards scanned.