Turkey closes thousands of hotels.

It is planned to close 17% of hotels across Turkey, including in Istanbul and popular tourist resorts. Over the past three years, the decision to close 4,380 hotels that do not meet tourism requirements has been made. The proposal for strict measures is likely related to the tragedy at the ski resort. According to the changes to the tourism law for 2021-2023, hotels that received business licenses from municipalities and provincial administrations must obtain a tourism business license within 6 months. Hotels that do not obtain a license within this period will be closed within a month. In total, the ministry has decided to close 4,380 hotels that did not pass the qualification check as tourism facilities. This accounts for 16.9% of the total number of hotels in Turkey. The main affected cities are Istanbul (767 hotels), Izmir (515 hotels), and Sakarya (499 hotels). Hotels in Mugla, Antalya, Aydin, Canakkale, Bursa, Balikesir, Denizli, Kocaeli, and other provinces have also been closed.

It is worth noting that there was a fire at the Kartalkaya ski resort, resulting in 78 fatalities. The Grand Kartal hotel was demolished.