Authorities of the Gaziantep Zoo are expecting 1.5 million visitors in 2010.

The Gaziantep Zoo is located on a land of 1,000,000 square meters and has around 4,000 animals from 250 species.

The Gaziantep Zoo happens to be Turkey's biggest zoo and is among the most popular zoos in Europe.

Aside from receiving visitors from all corners of Turkey, the Zoo also attracts visitors from Aleppo, Syria.

Speaking to the AA, Director General of the Gaziantep Zoo, Celal Ozsoyler, said that "Syrians love the Gaziantep Zoo".

After the mutual visa requirement was lifted by Turkey and Syria recently, we are receiving dozens of Syrians on a daily basis. We expect more visitors as the temperatures in Gaziantep are getting warmer with the arrival of spring, Ozsoyler said.

The construction of the Gaziantep Zoo began in 1998 and ended in 2001.

Gaziantep is amongst the oldest continually inhabited cities in the world. The city has two central districts under its administration, Sahinbey and Sehitkamil, and the metropolitan area has a total population of 1,252,329 (2007) and an area of 7,642 square kilometers (2,950 sq mi). Gaziantep is the sixth largest province in Turkey and the largest one in the country's south-eastern Anatolia region.

Gaziantep is famous for its regional specialities: the copper-ware products and "Yemeni" slippers, specific to the region, are two examples. The city is an economic center for south-eastern and eastern Turkey. The number of large industrial businesses established in Gaziantep comprise four percent of Turkish industry in general, while small industries comprise six percent. Also, Gaziantep has the largest organized industrial area in Turkey and holds first position in exports and imports.

Gaziantep also has a developing tourist industry. Development around the base of the castle upgrades the beauty and accessibility to the castle and to the surrounding copper workshops. New restaurants and tourist friendly businesses are moving into the area. In comparison with some other regions of Turkey, tourists are still a novelty in Gaziantep and the locals make them very welcome. Many students studying the English language are willing to be guides for tourists.

Gaziantep is one of the leading producers of machined carpets in the world. It exported approximately 700 million USD of machine-made carpets in 2006. There are over 100 carpet facilities in the Gaziantep Organized Industrial Zone.

Gaziantep also produced 60,000 MT of pistachios in 2007. Turkey is third in pistachio production in the world, after Iran and USA. The town lent its name to the Turkish word for "pistachio", 'antep fistigi', meaning "antep peanut".

There are direct flights to Gaziantep from the Turkish capital province of Ankara and north-western province of Istanbul on a daily basis.

A flight from Ankara to Gaziantep takes place in about an hour while flights from Istanbul to Gaziantep last around 1.5 hours.


AA