Türkiye’s ski resorts are bracing for peak demand during the mid-year school holiday, with industry representatives expecting near or full occupancy across most destinations as snowfall boosts last-minute bookings.
Schools are set to close for the semester break on Jan. 16, launching a 16-day holiday period, including weekends.
Industry figures indicate that demand this year is between 15 percent and 40 percent higher than during the same period last year, daily Hürriyet reported.
Zafer Akşehirlioğlu, general manager of a tourism and sports group at the Erciyes ski resort in the central province of Kayseri, said bookings have accelerated significantly ahead of the break.
He noted continued interest from abroad, with regular charter flights arriving from Poland and the Czech Republic, as well as growing demand from Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Brazil and Mexico.
According to Akşehirlioğlu, the resort expects around 1.5 million visitors over an intense 15-day period.
In Uludağ, one of Türkiye’s most popular ski destinations in the northwestern city of Bursa, hotels are almost fully booked for the first week of the holiday.
Burak Beceren, Uludağ representative of a touristic hoteliers association, said daily visitor numbers typically reach around 50,000 on peak days, falling to about 40,000 on others.
Holiday costs at Türkiye’s ski resorts vary widely depending on location and hotel category.
For a four-night, five-day stay between Jan. 19 and Jan. 23 for two adults and one 12-year-old child, prices at Uludağ range from 60,000 to 160,000 Turkish Liras, equivalent to about $1,389 to $3,704.
Similar packages in Erciyes range from roughly 46,000 to 160,000 liras ($1,065 to $3,704).
