Türkiye to Expand Culture Route Festival to 32 Provinces and Plans International Convention Centre in Antalya

More than 440 events across 40 venues in Antalya over nine days, alongside 85 local culinary experiences, as Türkiye's tourism revenue reaches $51.3 billion in nine months

Türkiye's Minister of Culture and Tourism, Mehmet Nuri Ersoy, has announced plans to expand the Türkiye Culture Route Festival from 26 provinces in 2026 to 32 provinces in 2027, coinciding with the opening of the festival's Antalya programme and the unveiling of plans for a major exhibition and convention centre in the coastal city following its hosting of the COP31 climate conference.

The announcement came during the opening of the Antalya leg of the festival on Saturday, October 31, 2026. The nine-day programme runs until November 8 and features more than 440 events across over 40 venues.

Antalya's festival programme includes concerts, theatre productions, opera, ballet, art exhibitions, traditional craft workshops and activities for children, alongside visits to historical attractions.

Major concerts are being held at Konyaaltı Beach Park, while the wider programme features artistic performances and exhibitions highlighting local heritage and Turkish culture.

In the culinary tourism segment, the minister announced the selection of 85 food-tasting locations to introduce visitors to Mediterranean cuisine and the influence of traditional Yörük culture on regional recipes.

The initiative provides an opportunity to showcase the region's culinary heritage alongside the natural and historical attractions for which Antalya is known.

Ersoy also revealed plans to develop one of Türkiye's largest exhibition, convention and event centres at the Expo Antalya site following the city's hosting of the United Nations COP31 climate conference, scheduled for November 2026.

He explained that the project aims to strengthen meetings and convention tourism while expanding tourism activity during the winter and spring seasons.

The project's investment value, capacity and opening date have not yet been announced. It therefore remains at the planning stage.

The developments coincide with the release of Türkiye's tourism results for the first nine months of 2026, which showed revenue rising by 2.4% to $51.28 billion, while visitor arrivals reached approximately 49.13 million.

Russia, Germany and the United Kingdom were among the leading source markets, according to figures announced by the minister on October 30.

The planned expansion of the Türkiye Culture Route Festival to 32 provinces reflects the country's approach to distributing cultural events across a wider range of destinations, rather than concentrating tourism experiences in major coastal cities.

For visitors to Antalya, the festival offers an opportunity to combine artistic performances, historical attractions and local culinary experiences within a single trip.

Meanwhile, the proposed convention centre represents a separate initiative to develop business tourism beyond the peak summer season.