Belgian Tourists Prefer Turkey

BRUSSELS - Belgian tourists preferred Turkey in 2004, sources said on Wednesday.
The number of Belgian tourists who arrived in Turkey in 2004 increased by 61 percent, when compared with 2003.
Association of Belgian Tour Operators (ABTO) stated that tours to Spain and Portugal which were mostly preferred by Belgian tourists in previous years, decreased by 20 percent, while the number of Belgian tourists who visited Greece dropped by 12 percent.
Belgian tourists mostly prefer southern Antalya province and Bodrum town of eastern Mugla province in Turkey.
ABTO officials said that 150,000 Belgian tourists arrived in Turkey in 1999 and this figure increased by 72 percent in 2000 to reach 257,000. The number of Belgian tourists who preferred Turkey in 2001 was 310,000 and 314,000 in 2002 . The number has exceeded 400,000 in 2003.
(GC-ULG) 11.08.2004