Last week, Turkey celebrated Ramazan Bayramı (Eid al-Fitr), the end of the Holy month of Ramazan.
Here’s a round up of the Ramazan news…
People across Turkey celebrated the first day of Ramazan on Tuesday with mosques packed for early morning prayers and people hosting friends and families at their homes.
The holiday brought joy particularly to children, who receive candy and presents as part of the tradition.
Thousands of worshippers were given breakfast and soup after Eid prayers in mosques across the country.
Families also visited the graves of their loved ones.
Thousands took to the roads to travel to their hometowns or flock to the beaches in coastal cities for the 9-day vacation.
On the roads
185,000 traffic crews were deployed, particularly on busy roads, to prevent accidents that have been common during all long holidays, and police stepped up road checks against reckless drivers and vehicles violating road safety. Police also deployed drones and helicopters in congested spots and highways.
Even with the extra precautions, 136 traffic accidents were recorded across the country claiming at least 86 lives over the nine-day period with another 536 people injured.
In a statement, Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu pointed out that, although the numbers are still too high, there has been a 51.5% decrease in the death toll resulting from traffic accidents over the last ten years.
In Muğla
During the Feast of Ramazan it is the role of the Jandarma to ensure the security of citizens and visitors and to minimize public order, traffic, terrorism and narcotics threats.
In Muğla, 459 members of the Jandarma and two dog teams carried out ‘Peace and Trust’ checks to ensure the security of citizens and holiday makers during the holiday.
The checks were carried out at bus-stops, bus stations, airports, maritime piers, squares and shopping malls.
The numbers of domestic visitors to Muğla was 40 percent down compared to last year, 650 thousand vehicles and 5 million domestic tourists compared to 1 million vehicles and 10 million domestic tourists.
The most popular tourist destination in Muğla was Bodrum with approximately 2 million visitors.
In Fethiye
Locals in the area did their best to avoid the congestion caused by the 1.3 million holiday makers who chose to visit the Fethiye area, creating traffic chaos on the roads.
At one point, the Jandarma closed the road from the Hisarönü junction to Ölüdeniz for approximately two hours as cars trying to get to Ölüdeniz tailed back for five miles
Some parked up their vehicles and walked to Ölüdeniz.
Hotels in Ölüdeniz were full to capacity but that didn’t deter some people who pitched there tents at the side of the road.
Beaches were almost equally as chaotic. At least there was the option to cool off in the water.
Ramazan Bayramı generates TL 12 billion in revenue
It’s good news for domestic tourism. Ramazan Bayram break brought 12 billion TL in revenue, creating a significant gain in momentum within the industry and exceeding the forecast of 10 billion TL.
Ramazan Bayramı (Eid al-Fitr) 2020
Next year (2020), the Ramazan holiday starts on Sunday, May 24th and ends on Tuesday, May 26. If you’re planning a holiday in Fethiye, you might want to bear this in mind.
We hope everyone who visited the area over the holidays had a wonderful time.
Sources: Haberler.com/Daily Sabah/Hürriyet Daily News/Muğlatürk/Fethiye Haber Bülteni
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