Özet:

Railway transportation has played a leading role in the development of world tourism. However, in Türkiye, the emphasis was put on road transportation instead of railway transportation, leaving railway transportation to be less developed, which led to the lack of a developed rail network. This in turn led to railways being underdeveloped both in terms of tourism transportation and general passenger transportation. However, with the Eastern Express (EE) gaining popularity in terms of tourism in recent years and with the Touristic Eastern Express (TEE) services, which will specifically serve tourists on the Ankara-Kars route, being put into service, the touristic importance of railways has gained attention. In this context, in this study, the effect railways have had on tourism throughout the years has been examined via the case of TEE, and some suggestions are made for the betterment of railway tourism in Türkiye. The data source of the research for which the descriptive research design is preferred is the statistical data obtained from the relevant institutions and field observations. The TEE has attracted great attention from tourists for both the nostalgic trip experience it provides and the advantage it has in terms of scenery throughout its route. This led to not only touristic activity in its arrival destination, Kars province, but also a revival in places where long-term breaks were made throughout the route. Along with this, its services being spread throughout the year and integrated with other alternative types of tourism would contribute more to the development of sustainable tourism. Also, similar practices could be implemented on some other mainline routes within the TCDD (Turkish State Railways).

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