Burak Tonbul, Chairman of the Board of Diana Travel—one of Türkiye’s most established tourism companies—shared his assessment of key sector developments with Turizm Ekononmi, sister B2B portal of Türkiye Travel News.
Speaking to Turizm Ekonomi News Editor Savaş Daş, Tonbul said 2025 has been a challenging year for tourism professionals due to hotel and airline pricing policies, mounting cost pressures, and exchange rate dynamics. He noted that 2026 is likely to resemble 2025 in many respects. Tonbul also announced that Diana Travel will handle the incoming operations of Germany’s second-largest tour operator, Dertour, in the Aegean region, covering Dalaman, Bodrum, and İzmir.
“2025 looked good on paper but was extremely challenging”
Tonbul emphasized that while the 2025 season appears strong in terms of numbers, it proved extremely difficult for industry players. He explained that a promising early booking period lost momentum when hotels withdrew early booking discounts, leading to a sharp slowdown in reservations.
“Bookings virtually came to a halt. This pushed us out of a competitive position and caused customers to look elsewhere,” he said. Apart from the early Easter holiday period, the sector struggled significantly in April and May, extending even into mid-June.
“Some capacities were ınsufficient, some routes were cancelled”
Tonbul pointed out that airlines, like hotels, faced serious challenges, operating with substantial gaps until nearly the end of June. “Until almost July, airlines were flying with load factors of 75–80 percent, which is a major problem for any carrier,” he noted. As a result, some capacities were reduced and certain routes were removed altogether.
“Families are the most budget-loyal customers”
According to Tonbul, demand recovered after June 20 as prices adjusted downward. He stressed that Diana Travel’s core customer base consists mainly of families, who are highly loyal to their holiday budgets.
“If a family allocated €5,000 for a holiday this year, they cannot suddenly spend €8,000 next year—maybe €5,500 or €5,700 at most,” he said. While acknowledging that economic conditions limited flexibility, Tonbul underlined a key principle: “The most expensive hotel bed and airline seat in the world is the empty one.” With price adjustments, he added, the remainder of the season through late November performed well in numerical terms.
“Large gaps on aircraft were not sustainable”
Commenting on Jet2’s decision to cut routes and frequencies to Türkiye for the 2026 season—particularly to Dalaman—and its limited Türkiye planning at its new Gatwick base, Tonbul said the move was not coincidental.
“Jet2 is a company that has invested heavily in Türkiye and needs to see returns on that investment,” he said. “Significant gaps emerged on aircraft, and that is not sustainable. This is less a ‘capacity cut’ and more of a necessary adjustment. If demand returns, I am confident capacity will be restored.”
“Jet2’s Gatwick planning ıs not a negative signal”
Tonbul also noted that Gatwick is a major hub for EasyJet, which operates around 90 aircraft from the airport and already offers extensive flights to Türkiye, including Dalaman. “Jet2’s limited seat allocation does not mean reduced overall connectivity to Türkiye from Gatwick,” he said.
“2026 will not be very different from 2025”
Looking ahead, Tonbul identified the start of the 2026 season as the main risk, citing the absence of public holidays in April and May. However, based on current booking trends, he does not expect a fundamentally different year.
“There is demand and reservations are coming in. Facilities that sold well in 2025 are selling well again. Unless there is an unforeseen development, 2026 will be similar to 2025,” he said.
“Hoteliers will not repeat the same mistake”
Tonbul believes hoteliers will avoid withdrawing early booking discounts as they did in 2025. “Everyone was burned by that decision,” he said, adding that Easter falling in March will make April particularly difficult, while winter demand remains weak and hotel openings are limited due to renovations required by new regulations.
“Shorter stays and growing currency pressure”
Tonbul highlighted economic pressures as the industry’s biggest challenge in 2025. Average length of stay fell by about one day, while exchange rate and inflation pressures intensified.
“Based on what we see, the same issues will continue into the new year. There is no increase in length of stay and no favorable shift in economic indicators,” he said.
Diana Travel’s performance and partnerships
Tonbul stated that Diana Travel met its 2025 plans and did not experience a poor year numerically. He explained that the cooperation agreement with Alltours—originally set to run until April 2027—was terminated at Alltours’ initiative after the tour operator established its own incoming company. During Diana Travel’s tenure, Alltours’ Türkiye guest numbers increased from 220,000 in 2024 to 416,000.
EasyJet Holidays to continue double-digit growth
Tonbul said EasyJet Holidays, Diana Travel’s UK partner, remains a strong, young, and profitable company. While the UK market overall may remain stable, EasyJet Holidays is expected to increase its market share. “All our planning, contracts, and purchasing are based on double-digit growth, and current booking flows are in line with these projections,” he said.
“We partnered with Dertour in the Aegean”
In the German market, Tonbul noted that there is currently no partnership on the scale of Alltours. However, Diana Travel has entered into a new cooperation with the Dertour Group.
“At this stage, Diana Group represents Dertour in Dalaman, Bodrum, and İzmir,” he concluded.