Attending the online meeting “İzmir Tourism in New Normalization Process” held by Association of Turkish Travel Agencies, Mayor Tunç Soyer announced the new road map for İzmir tourism.

In the online meeting of Association of Turkish Travel Agencies (TURSAB) titled “İzmir Tourism in New Normalization Process”, İzmir Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Tunç Soyer met tourism agencies. Mayor Soyer announced the roadmap of İzmir tourism and said, “with new tourism and promotion strategy of İzmir completed with coordination of İzmir Foundation and support of our municipality and İZKA, we wrote the constitution of İzmir tourism”
Mayor Soyer said “our strategy defines everything that we will do for tourism in İzmir for the following five years. Our tourism roadmap covers all tourism destinations of İzmir. We prepare 12 month plans for all tourism related activities in İzmir.” Expressing that they are in “a ground breaking preparation” to enable access by systematically connecting all destinations in İzmir, Mayor Soyer added, “we connect and make accessible all cultural, historic, gastronomical, rural and natural destinations of İzmir with İzMiras (İzHeritage) Routes.”

Visit İzmir will accept guests in autumn
Mayor Soyer said that information on these destinations will be easily accessible through Visit İzmir mobile app and anyone visiting or living in İzmir will easily access detailed information on each area. The progress in this work reached 70% and will become available this fall. Our works on direct access to İzmir through direct flights and cruise visits hindered by pandemic have intensified back. We completed all our preparations. We completed a new visual ID for İzmir.”

Also mentioning ferry line between İzmir and Lesbos island, Mayor Soyer said, “Currently it is planned to start on July, 24th but changes can happen. Initially it will start twice a week, on Saturdays and Sundays.”
 
“We are running development plans for preservation”
Mayor Soyer answered questions from tourism representatives, answering question from TURSAB Board of Directors Member Tolga Gencer “How will you bring in Kültürpark to İzmir tourism?” Mayor Soyer said, “We will continue to preserve Kültürpark as the most beautiful green area of İzmir while we will materialize the concept of people’s school here. We work with professional chambers. We are preparing a development plan for preservation. We follow this process to attain a result shaped by consensus where nobody will object. It will be completed shortly. We will start a work that all İzmir accepts and is pleased with.”

Two grand festivals will be held
Expressing that two more festivals; namely Sea Festival and Street Festival will be held in İzmir, Mayor Soyer said, “We are striving to bring Agora more to the front in the area. Nationalization continues. This work will increase visibility of Agora. Furthermore, it will be a step to make it contribute more to city tourism”.
 
“No more security issues in Kadifekale”
On a question on how security will be ensured in Kadifekale, Soyer responded, “In fact we changed a lot there with the bazaar work and the women’s cooperatives we started in there for some time. It’s a time consuming change but we are ready. I’ll make this clear that there will be no security issues there. It will not be different from another part of İzmir. We continue our works that will enable people to earn a living. When people earn, life there will be improved and easier.”