Aydin province tourism potential analysis

Tourism sector named as `Smokeless Industry?, which has an increasing contribution into national economy in a more globalized world, is one of the leading sectors in Turkey. Turkey, being a peninsula surrounded by the seas on three sides, not only serves for sun-sand-sea tourism with its Anatolian Lands cradle to many civilizations, but also offers important products to the tourism sector with its cultural and historical values. Turkey, providing world?s tourism sector with a large scale of products thanks to its capacity in winter, cruise, health and thermal tourism developing in recent years, is a country that succeeded in turning differences into advantages. Turkey serves thermal and cultural tourism with Eastern, South-eastern and Middle Anatolia tours, health and camping tourism with its Black Sea Region, coastal tourism with its Mediterranean Region and all tourism types with its Aegean and Marmara Region. Turkey, attracting tourists from many countries mainly from Germany, Russia and the UK, is trying to increase both the revenues from tourism and incoming tourist numbers and the number of tourist sending countries as well diversifying its tourism sector in the recent years.Turkish tourism actors are making a great effort to expand tourism industry in the country. For this reason, they are trying to increase the share they have in world?s tourism market and the number of incoming tourists introducing prominent characteristics of their cities to the world?s market. Aydın Province, much of whose economy is based on agriculture and animal breeding, is one of the provinces wanting to take a slice out of the tourism cake. This study that tries to introduce the products Aydın Province offers or can offer for the tourism market addresses cultural, historical, thermal and sea resources individually. This study also gives place to tourism actors to reveal the tourism potential, and organization, marketing and advertising efforts to be made.Keywords:Tourism, tourism sector, types of tourism, thermal tourism, cultural tourism, tourism in Aydın