A Turkish tourism industry insider has said the country is bracing itself for more opportunistic moves from rival destinations to steal holidaymakers away. Last year, there were reports of empty resorts as domestic tourists, hit by Turkey’s sky-high inflation, were tempted across the Mediterranean to Greece, which had set up a special visa scheme for them.

As the busy summer holiday season approaches leading advisor for the Association of Turkish Travel Agencies, Hamit Kuk, has identified some other nations that might join Greece in trying to lure tourists away.

Asked if he was expecting any visa schemes like the one that tempted 150,000 Turks to go to the Greek island of Samos last summer, which was more than triple the number who visited the year before, Kuk replied: “The Egyptian state may come to the fore in this regard.

“Turkish tourists showed interest here throughout the winter. Dubai has also become a popular destination. Other Balkan countries, such as Bosnia and Albania, may [attempt to get Turkish tourists].”

Traditionally an affordable alternative to traditional hotspots along the Mediterranean, Kuk said the economic conditions that had pushed up the costs in Turkey had levelled the playing field.

“Tourists looking for a low-budget holiday may prefer Egypt and Tunisia instead of Turkey,” he said.

“But for tourists in the middle and high-income groups, we will be in serious competition with Spain and Greece.

“In the past, we had many advantages in competition with these countries. Now there are equal competition conditions.”

Nevertheless, he still felt strongly that the Brits who head to Turkey in their droves each year will not be disappointed.

“The British can find everything they are looking for in Spain and Greece in Turkey,” he added.

“Despite everything, the British will prefer Turkey this year. Tourism professionals here believe in this very much.

“The quality of the hotels, the delicious food and Turkish hospitality are the factors that convince the British to go.”

He pointed out that while mass inflation in Turkey has pushed up prices, it has not made things unaffordable, and the trend wasn't unique to the Mediterranean destination.

“Despite everything, the fact that the Turkish Lira has lost value in exchange rates in the last two months may attract the British who shop with the pound,” he said.

“Yes, accommodation prices in Turkey have increased but the same price increases are also seen in other destinations.

“The only difference is this; due to high inflation and price increases, we, as Turkey, have partially lost our cheap cost card for now.

“But we still have many advantages over our competitors and we trust in this advantage.”

In fact, Kuk is predicting growth in the tourism sector.

“We may have a hard time but I expect a 5% or more increase in all markets,” Kuk said.

“There is no problem in reaching more tourist numbers for Turkish tourism.

“The problem is what kind of profitability picture we will encounter at the end of the year and the only thing that worries us is how profitable we will be.”