Scorching Temps Don't Deter Vacationing Turks

ISTANBUL - Vacationers in Turkey are enduring sizzling heat as millions from Istanbul and elsewhere journey to the southern coast for Kurban Bayram, or feast of the sacrifice, a weeklong Islamic holiday.

Sweltering summers are nothing new for the country, but this year’s exceptionally high temperatures might be. According to the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), a warming global climate has brought Turkey intensely hotter summers and declining precipitation, causing droughts. This week, Turkey’s state meteorological service forecasts a high of 38 degrees Celsius in Marmaris, a popular tourist destination on the southern coast. That’s 8 degrees hotter than the average maximum temperature recorded from 1981 to 2010. The heat does not appear to be sapping Turks’ desire to travel. In fact, many are bound for destinations that are even hotter than the cities in which they reside.