By Nilay Kar Onum
ISTANBUL
As, each year, Istanbul sees a considerable increase in the number of its tourists, so too grows the number of ways to entertain them.
Not satisfied with admiring the Blue Mosque from the banal ground, some of the 11.6 million people that have so far visited Istanbul -- according to the annual Mastercard Global Destination Cities Index released in July -- increasingly prefer the levity of flight to explore the marvels the city has to offer.
Indeed, helicopter tours have steadily become the latest fad foreigners crave to visit Turkey’s most populated city.
"We've been organizing individual helicopter tours in Istanbul since 2000 but our 15-minute regular tourist tours on Sundays began in April this year," says Kemal Suler, the general manager of Kaan Air, one of two main companies, with Sancak Air, providing helicopter tours in the city. "We've had 200 customers since August [for touristic tours]. The demand has been increasing day by day."
The company offers a variety of "flight-seeing" routes, from the Golden Horn to the historical peninsula the Bosporus to the nearby Princes islands.
"We've had some customers, who took the same tour three times. Some people ask if there is another tour, which takes longer, while others say they will come and fly again, with friends," says Suler.
Sevinc Akdogan, who works for tour operator GeziciYAK -- which has been organizing helicopter tours since 2006 -- confirms they are a unique choice for their customers.
"Almost everyone knows what travelling by plane means, but less have had a helicopter adventure. It is a very different and exciting experience -- especially during takeoff and landing," says Akogan.
"Some people prefer helicopter tours to experience the adrenaline, others want to have special moments with their loved ones and a majority of people wish to see the touristic sites of Istanbul from the air," she adds.
Kaan Air proposes, for 15-minute Istanbul tours, seats next to the pilot at €149 ($190) per person. Window seats cost €99 (close to $130) while middle seats are sold for €49 (a little more than $60).
Turkey's first air taxi company Sancak Air -- which was established in 1978 -- focuses on air taxi service rather than regular helicopter tours.
"We have four helicopters that we use for air taxi services. They fly around 70 hours a month," says Berkant Evdan, a tour operator and planning specialist with Sancak Air.
Air taxi services at more than €1,000 ($1280) are more expensive than regular tourist tours because they are tailored to customers' wishes. They are picked up whenever and wherever they want and dropped off at any location of their choosing.
Moreover, they shorten travel-time significantly and provide an alternative in traffic-infested Istanbul.
Indeed, Istanbul is the second worst city after Moscow in terms of traffic congestion in Europe, according to Dutch manufacturer of navigation systems for drivers, TomTom.
But, air taxi is also used for celebratory purposes.
"Around 20 percent of air taxi services include customers who want to arrange a marriage proposal or to celebrate a loved one’s birthday," Evdan says.
Still, the majority of tourists simply wish to benefit from a unique vantage point to admire Istanbul’s architectural gems.
"The numbers of tourists coming from the Middle East as well as America and Europe for 30, 45 or 60 minutes individual tours are greater than the number of Turks," says Kaan Air’s manager Kemal Suler.
However, winter puts a damper to tourists' wishes of escape through flight, as there is a 25 percent decrease in sales because of harsher weather conditions, adds Sevinc Akdogan from GeziciYAK.
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