Foreign tourists who choose the southern province of Antalya for their vacations have found Turkey to be safe and are said to prefer remaining there to returning home as global coronavirus infections continue to rise.
COVID-19 measures in the health and tourism fields have given confidence to domestic and foreign travelers in Turkey.
The number of foreign residents in Antalya on the Mediterranean coast increased after Turkey began international flights and lifted travel restrictions, according to the headman of the Mahmutlar neighborhood.
Ahmet Top told Anadolu Agency (AA) Friday that 12,000 people from 40 nations live in the neighborhood, which has a population of 65,000.
Russians make up half of the residents, and others from Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and Iran have settled in the district by buying or renting homes, according to Top, who said there are no COVID-19 patients in intensive care units at local hospitals. He said the number of cases is very low compared to those in the foreigners’ home countries, underlining that coronavirus measures are strictly applied in the neighborhood.
