ISTANBUL - Turkish Airlines sees signs of Thai tourists returning to Turkey after a plunge caused by a spate of violence in recent months.
There is revived interest among Thai travel agencies and tour operators in re-organising package tours to the transcontinental Eurasian republic as concerns arising from a coup attempt and bombings seem to be subsiding.
The flag carrier of Turkey has begun to offer heavily discounted fares, as little as 14,000 baht round-trip for Bangkok-Istanbul compared with the usual rate of 24,000 baht, as a stimulus for travel to Turkey.
But the likelihood is the revival will be gradual and the airline, the sole carrier providing a non-stop connection between Thailand and Turkey, will finish 2016 carrying 10,000 Thai passengers -- a quarter of last year's tally, say aviation executives.
"Fair to say we are seeing a recovery in travel confidence and renewed interest in Turkey as a vacation destination among Thais, but it would be unrealistic to expect them to come back in hordes quickly," a senior Turkish Airlines executive told the Bangkok Post on condition of anonymity.
Turkey was rocked by a failed military coup on July 15 that killed at least 90 people, while on June 28, 45 people lost their lives and hundreds were wounded when three suspected Islamic State militants carried out a gun and bomb attack on Istanbul's Ataturk airport.
Foreign tourist arrivals to Turkey fell by 30.3% in the first seven months of the year to 14.2 million, reported the country's Tourism Ministry.
As Turkey's tourism industry returns to normalcy with heightened security measures and a steadier economy, the airline expects its Thai passengers to soar to 60,000 next year. The carrier predicts a resumption of robust growth in the next few years that was last seen in 2012 when the two countries introduced visa exemptions for their nationals, the executive said.
There is a growing interest among Thais not only in Istanbul, home to the massive 17th-century Blue Mosque and the circa-1460 Topkapi Palace, former home of sultans, but also the surreal swooping rock valleys of Cappadocia and the pure white travertine terraces of Pamukkale cascade, said the executive.
Turkish Airlines has fared relatively well during the downturn on its flights between Bangkok and Istanbul, which are served by two daily flights with A330 wide-body jets. It achieved a load factor of over 80% on the city pair, driven by transfer passengers in both directions, the executive said.
A. Harun Basturk, Turkish Airlines' vice-president for sales in Asia and the Far East, said the country and the airline will see a full recovery in traffic within a year if nothing "dramatic" happens in Turkey and Europe, one of Turkey's major source markets.
"The demand is there, people still want to travel, but they have some questions," Mr Basturk said. "Within a year most matters will be settled."
Among the positive developments for Turkey's tourism industry are potential rebounds from Russia and China, which are among key source markets, said Turkish Airlines executives.
Russia lifted a charter flight ban on Aug 28 that was imposed after a Russian warplane was shot down after it crossed into Turkish airspace while on a sortie against Islamic State forces in neighbouring Syria.
Turkey apologised to Russia over the incident. Scheduled flights between the two countries have not been affected.
China also rolled back a travel security alert, prompted by the attempted coup, which was viewed as a tourism impediment.
Turkey reports Russian visitor numbers plunged 89% in the first seven months this year to 231,000. Visitors from Europe, the US, Australia and Canada also fell sharply.
Turkish tourism operators are hoping for a 15% uptick in tourism income from the Russian market in the upcoming period.
The Association of Turkish Travel Agencies estimated 600,000 Russian visitors this year, down from 4.5 million in 2014.
Turkey hopes to woo over 1 million Chinese tourists this year, up from 314,000 last year as reported by China Daily.