[IMG=21285-7154]In particular, tour operator Pac Group made a decision not to sell tours to Palandoken, tours to where were in the assortment of the company since the end of 1990s. Tourist flow to the resort was stable except the season 2005-2006 when the sales were blocked by the bird flue.
Nadezhda Filina, Director of Bulgarian Department and Deputy Director of the Turkish Department of PAC Group, commented on the company’s initiative as follows: ‘the demand for the destination is low. Besides, the quality of services provided is getting worse. Therefore, we made a decision to reorientate in favor of Uludag’. According to the expert, at the moment the second zone with its own system cable cars and 4* hotel is being developed at the resort.
Meanwhile, other tour operators do not rush into terminating their programs to Palandoken. Thus, Marina Mantula, Sales Director Deputy of Detour, pointed out that ‘last year the level of services was low, however, in the coming season our partners plan to improve it’. Moreover, according to her, at the moment the company receives many phone calls from tourists wishing to go to Palandoken.
TEZ TOUR representatives also confirmed the demand for the resort that explains the decision of the company to sell also tours to Sorokamish. ‘We call it second Palandoken. It is located close to Erzurum airport’, said Roman Ribakov, PR-Director of TEZ TOUR. Furthermore, Fresh Travel has their plans regarding Palandoken. General Director of the company offered to follow the history of the resort: ‘tourists from Russia were first sent to the resort in 1995. Problems with service quality did not appear suddenly and before they did not affect the tourist flow. However, it is 100% true we will work on the destination. If we do not have enough demand we will offer our clients to go with a different tour operator – all companies have similar rates’.
The expert also added that termination of programs to Palandoken by PAC Group is mainly explained by negative consequences of the bird flue not by sudden decrease in service quality.
