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Türkiye’s Minister of Culture and Tourism, Mehmet Nuri Ersoy, said Sunday that the introduction of “night-time museum visits” has allowed all segments of society in cities to benefit from tourism, calling it an important step for sustainability in the sector.
Speaking at the opening of the World Travel and Tourism Council’s (WTTC) 2025 Global Summit in Rome, Ersoy took part in a panel titled “Advancing Towards a Connected World of Travel and Tourism.”
Ersoy emphasized that Anatolia, home to some of the world’s oldest civilizations, is Türkiye’s “true heritage.” He said that seven years ago, the country decided to better utilize this cultural wealth to make destinations more attractive.
He noted that the government increased the budget for archaeological excavations 20-fold.
“The more we invest in our culture and archaeology, the more it helps us promote our tourism. As we invested, we earned from tourism. We decided to allocate part of our tourism revenue to finance our culture and archaeology."
"In this way, we created a good ecosystem and have achieved very good results over the past seven years,” Ersoy said.
He added that these investments extended the tourism season, as cultural travelers are not limited to summer months.
Ersoy said another major result was the launch of the “night museum” initiative, which allows visits to archaeological sites from sunset until 10 p.m.
“In the summer, especially along Türkiye’s coasts, the weather gets very hot, sometimes reaching 30, 35, or even 40 degrees. When it’s that hot, everyone prefers to stay at home or in hotels. But we launched the ‘night museum’ program at archaeological sites. This was very useful,” he said.
Tourists began leaving their hotels to visit museums and sites, then continued into city centers, boosting local economies, Ersoy said.
“This is very important for the sustainability of tourism. If everyone benefits from tourism, no one will oppose it. Everyone will want more tourism in their cities. This creates a good atmosphere of peace between investors and the local population,” he added.
Ersoy said the program’s success has sparked growing demand across the country.
“Now, all cities in Türkiye want tourism. They are asking us for new strategies and forward-looking tourism master plans. This is a good thing because Türkiye has very big goals in tourism, and I believe we will achieve them with these new strategies,” he said.
He also highlighted infrastructure development, particularly in Antalya and Istanbul, where new airports have removed slot restrictions. Investments in highways and railways are underway to meet rising demand.
“Things are moving very fast in Türkiye, and you can see this in our numbers,” Ersoy said.
“There has been a very rapid increase, especially in visitor numbers. Each year, the numbers rise, and comfort also increases, particularly thanks to infrastructure investments."
"This has also increased the per-night spending per tourist in Türkiye. I believe that within the next 10 years, we will reach all our targets.”
At the conclusion of his remarks, Ersoy encouraged participants to experience night visits themselves, calling it “a completely different experience.”
The minister also joined other officials for a group photo at the WTTC Global Summit.
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