The effects of architectural arrangements on the foreign trade and international tourism: A case of Turkey and USA

Accessibility is one of the critical factors that increase tourism revenues, which is crucial to the development of the country's economy. In the first and second sections of this study, the contribution of the architectural regulations for the handicapped to the tourism and travel economies is revealed by the literature review. In the last chapter, Turkey and United States of America (USA) are compared with the accessibility arrangements and travel and tourism revenues. The research was supported by Manisa Celal Bayar University Scientific Research Projects Office, with Project 2017/081. The project observations were made in the most touristic and accessible 20 points in the center of Antalya, Turkey, while in 20 different points in four different cities in the US. As a result of analyzing the project results, a unique scale was developed for the measurement of accessibility regulations. The observed points were scored according to the accessibility rating criteria and the development scale. The rating sets a "level of accessibility" which represents the freedom of movement without obstruction. As a result of the reviews, the accessibility level of two countries has been identified as 5, for the United States and 2, for Turkey. Accessibility investments and spending in the US is approximately 100% effective, while it provides the economic contribution of 40% in Turkey. As a result of, it is expected that accessible tourism revenues will increase in the next decades. This research shows that it will be possible to increase the productivity of the economy with barrier-free investments.