Go, get the online visa power: Turkey
The Turkish government launches e-visa initiative for 94 countries, including India. A valid UK, US, Schengen or a valid visa from any of the OECD member countries is enough for an online tourist visa to Turkey
most of the countries we normally have a reciprocal system, this is the general policy of the Turkish government. However, India has a large population, and we see a big potential in this market. That is why we have Visa-onArrival (VoA) facility for Indians in Turkey, even though there is no such facility for Turkish nationals in India. Evisa is much easier you give all the information, you make your payments in advance and you just take a printout of the visa and carry your passport while travelling. VoA was also a good facility, but you had to go through one counter to make payment and another counter for the checking procedure so it was taking time. E-visa is all about single window clearance.”
The e-visa is helpful for those who would like to travel to Turkey for tourism or business purposes, as people do not have to waste time standing in queues at Turkish Embassies or Consulates or at the airport to obtain a visa. The e-visa is only valid for people travelling as tourists or for business purposes. If you want a study or a work visa, you require regular visa given by the Turkish embassies or consulates. “Indians travel very frequently to Europe and America. The share of the people who have valid Schengen, UK and US visas in India is very high so I believe the use of e-visa will also be very high here,” says Ayturk.
Talking about the general activities to promote tourism in Turkey, Ayturk says, “We are looking to engage in some joint advertising campaigns with some big players in the travel trade industry as well as organise some cultural activities. We are planning a few fashion shows in which we are getting designers from Turkey to showcase here. Once we decide on it, we are going to look for some collaborations in India as well. Also, we had hosted the Turkish hoteliers’ federation in India last year as this gave the hoteliers a platform to interact with the Indian travel trade and their counterparts in the hotel industry. I also wanted them to see the potential of the Indian market for themselves and I wanted their Indian counterparts to see what the Turkish resorts and hotels have to offer to the travellers. The event was a great success and now I have received a call from the federation saying that they want to come again this year in November. But this time, the federation want to come with the travel agents as well.”