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Turkey’s 'healthy tourism' efforts tested as foreign tourists trickle in

Some 40,000 Russian holidaymakers have thrown a life jacket to Turkey’s main touristic hub of Antalya, while other coastal areas count on locals to keep afloat.
ANTALYA, TURKEY - JULY 12: Tourists take part in an aqua aerobics session at an all inclusive Russian themed resort on July 12, 2016 in Antalya, Turkey. Russian President Vladimir Putin last month officially lifted travel restrictions on tourism to Turkey. Russia had banned agency tours to Turkey after a diplomatic crisis erupted when Turkey downed a Russian jet on the Turkey - Syrian border in November 2015.  Turkey's tourism is currently in crisis after a series of terrorist attacks, most recently the bom

CESME, Turkey — Rustic ropes separate beach chairs, placed in pairs under the shade of straw umbrellas, on the sandy beach of Altin Yunus, one of the oldest resorts in Turkey’s Aegean coastal town of Cesme, 70 kilometers (43 miles) from Izmir. On a recent August weekend, only a third of them are occupied and the hotel’s usual clientele of German, Dutch and Russian tourists is replaced by a handful of local clients, most of whom pointedly keep their distance from each other as they walk on the seafront. But cross to the adjacent public beach and the change is striking: Large groups sit closely on foldable chairs and fraternize. Older bathers, the most vulnerable group in the coronavirus pandemic, gather for a backgammon tournament. The only face masks in sight are those swept to the shore by the waves, half-buried in the sand. Images of golden youths partying on posh beaches are even more alarming.

Local officials, from mayors to police chiefs, make highly publicized inspections to the beaches and other touristic locations on the Aegean coast to drive home the point that the government’s safe vacation measures — which include distancing of 2 meters (6.5 feet), a buffet ban and servers obliged to wear masks — are religiously enforced. Following warnings of flare-ups after the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha in early August, the local health authorities have closed down 11 restaurants, beaches, bars and cafes in Cesme for disregarding social distancing and hygiene measures. Last week, Suleyman Soylu, Turkey’s iron-fisted interior minister, replaced the district governor of Cesme, allegedly for failing to ensure that beach clubs and restaurants toe the line.

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