Political tension between Turkey and Israel has already affected the tourism sector, with the number of Israeli visitors and cruises at Turkish marinas dropping to a critical level, officials say.

The conflict began at the World Economic Forum summit in Davos in late January and deteriorated further with the recent broadcast of a Turkish TV series on Israeli military attacks against civilians in Gaza.

Faik Melih Kaptanoğlu, the chairman of the Alanya Tourism Promotion Foundation, or ALTAV, told the Hürriyet Daily News & Economic Review that sales to Israeli tourists have come to a halt in the southern city of Antalya after the broadcast of the series “Ayrılık” on national television.

“Bilateral relations had already deteriorated after the Davos crisis, whichreflected on the tourism sector with a decrease of 75 percent in the number of Israeli arrivals,” said Kaptanoğlu, adding that attempts to defuse the tension at the beginning of the tourism season had helped to improve the situation.

Expressing his concerns about the serious loss in the Israeli market, Müfit Kaptanoğlu, chairman of the board of Alanya Marina, said that the marina lost 15 percent of its business in the 2009 season.

“The major loss took place after the Davos crisis,” he said. “Some 15 percent of our customers suddenly cancelled their bookings. I cannot say that the recent crisis regarding the series ‘Ayrılık’ has so much affected the already deceasing sales, because the 2009 cruise season is almost over.”

2010 tourism season at stake

Antalya is an important market for Israel in terms of both summer tourism and cruise tourism. And tourist trade with Israel is not just confined to the summer period; Israeli travelers also visit Turkey in the winter months and for the purpose of medical tourism.

Noting that the 2009 season has almost ended with a 60 percent total loss in the Israeli market, ALTAV’s Faik Kaptanoğlu said the picture looks even worse when cruises coming from Israel are taken into consideration. Last year, a total of 100,000 vessels from Israel reached Turkish marinas; this year, there have been only around 40,000.

“This downtrend will definitely affect winter tourism and the 2010 season,” he said.

The loss of Israeli customers at the Limak Limra Hotel has reached 30 percent, according to an executive from the hotel, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

“Israeli tourists are the year-round customers of Turkey’s tourism sector,” he said. “Those who prefer Turkey for holidays are generally from the middle-income class and they come throughout the 12 months, not only in summer.”

The hotel official said that unless some precautions are taken immediately, this trend is sure to have a negative implication on the coming tourism season.

An Oct. 18 story by Israel’s Yediot Ahoronot newspaper reported that Israeli tourism agencies say their bookings for Turkey have dropped sharply. Yehuda Safrani, the deputy chief executive of Ofir Tours, told the newspaper that Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s criticism against the Gaza operation has “had an effect on Israeli travelers.”

Most sector players think the process beginning with Erdoğan’s outburst against Israel in Davos has brought about serious losses in the Israeli market and damaged future relations between the two countries. But governmental bodies and some private-sector representatives regarded as being close to the governing Justice and Development Party, or AKP, refute the prevailing mood.

According to İbrahim Acar, the Antalya Provincial Culture and Tourism director, there has been absolutely no decrease in the number of cruises or flights as a result of the recent crisis.

“The tourism sector has been affected by the global economic crisis in general,” he said. “This also had its effects on the Israel market, just like many other markets, but it is not correct to link this loss either with the Davos case or with the ‘Ayrılık’ series.”

Acar added that contrary to what private-sector representatives say, arrivals from Israel have been gaining strength since June.

The corporate communication department of Rixos Hotels, which are preferred by many Israeli tourists, refused to comment on the issue when contacted by the Daily News