What Türsab does

TÜRSAB (Türkiye Seyahat Acentalar\u0131 Birli\u011fi / Association of Turkish Travel Agencies) is Turkey's statutorily recognized professional association for travel agencies, founded in 1972 and operating under the direct oversight of Turkey's Ministry of Culture and Tourism. Its functional role is to serve as the unified representative body for member travel agencies — providing regulatory advocacy, disciplinary and arbitration functions, license-related administration, and government liaison — while also delivering member services through an increasingly digital platform portfolio: the TÜRSAB Portal, Dijital Doğrulama Sistemi (DDS) for credential authentication, QR-coded vehicle certification (Araç Belgelendirme / Karekodlu Plaka), the TÜRSAB Kimlik Kart\u0131 identity card, the TÜRSAB Mobil Uygulamas\u0131 mobile app, TÜRSAB ROTA route planning, TÜRSAB Kart member benefits, TÜRSAB Akademi training and certification, TÜRSAB TV digital broadcasting, The Voice of Travel publication, and the TÜRSAB Meeting Point at Sabiha Gökçen International Airport.

The underlying business model is non-commercial: TÜRSAB is a non-profit association (Birlik) governed by a member-elected Board of Directors currently chaired by Firuz B. Bağlıkaya, funded primarily by mandatory annual membership dues (aidat) from registered travel agencies, and supported by installments on credit cards up to 9 installments. There is no equity, no shares, and no public revenue disclosure. Distribution is anchored by a general headquarters in Istanbul (Beşiktaş), regional representative committees (Bölge Temsil Kurulları) across Turkey, and representative offices in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia serving international member needs.

Recent strategic activity (June 2025) has clustered around financial partnerships that extend the value proposition to members: a DenizBank agreement to support member business volume (signed 16.06.2025), a multi-year Garanti Bankası guarantee-letter partnership (signed 17.06.2025, valid until 16.06.2027), a Taksitlio.com shopping-credit partnership to enable installment purchases from member agencies (signed 23.06.2025), and an ongoing webinar collaboration with Turkish Airlines (THY). Earlier partnerships include a healthcare-discount arrangement with Optimed Sağlık Hizmetleri A.Ş. and government-agency engagements with the Presidential National Palaces Administration and the Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change for tourism-operations data. TÜRSAB has also built out parallel non-profit sub-institutions including the TURSAV foundation, the TÜRSAB Lisesi high school, and the Turizm Yüzyılı initiative.

Name

Türsab

Legal name

Türkiye Seyahat Acentaları Birliği

Website

https://tursab.org.tr

Company type

Private

Founded year

1972

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

TÜRSAB is Turkey's statutorily recognized professional association for travel agencies, providing regulatory representation, member verification systems, training (TÜRSAB Akademi), financial partnerships, and digital services to member agencies across Turkey and Saudi Arabia.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Association / Trade Union Services (Travel Agencies)

NAICS

Travel Agencies (561510), Convention and Visitors Bureaus (561591), Other Travel Arrangement and Reservation Services (56159)

akta.pro primary industry

B2B Agent/Partner Booking Portals (Extranet) (THALADAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Itinerary Management & Trip Collaboration Apps (THALAMAE), Travel Program Analytics, BI & Reporting Tools (THAKANAD)

Keywords

• Travel agency association
• Professional association services
• Tourism industry representation
• Member verification systems
• Travel industry advocacy

Headquarters

HQ city

Besiktas

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Türsab is the official, non-profit professional association (Birlik) representing travel agencies in Turkey, providing statutory representation, advocacy, and member-support services to licensed travel agencies. It operates digital verification systems (Dijital Doğrulama Sistemi), identity-card issuance, QR-coded vehicle certification, a membership-card benefits program (TÜRSAB Kart), a professional training academy, a digital broadcasting platform (TÜRSAB TV), and an airport meeting-point service. Its central portal also delivers tourism statistics, regulatory information, and member-management functions.

Product overview

TÜRSAB operates a unified digital platform serving as the central portal for Turkey's travel agency industry. The main platform provides administrative services, member management, and tourism statistics. Related offerings include TÜRSAB TV for digital broadcasting, TÜRSAB ROTA for travel routes, TÜRSAB Kart for member benefits, TÜRSAB Akademi for training, and specialized verification systems (Dijital Doğrulama Sistemi, Araç Belgelendirme, TÜRSAB Kimlik Kartı) for credential authentication. The ecosystem also includes mobile applications and meeting point services at airports.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• TÜRSAB TV: TÜRSAB's digital television platform broadcasting tourism-related content
• TÜRSAB Kart
• TÜRSAB Rota
• TÜRSAB Akademi
• The Voice of Travel

Products and services

• TÜRSAB Kart Membership card providing benefits, discounts, and services to TÜRSAB members (travel-agency professionals) and their immediate family members.
• TÜRSAB Akademi Training and education platform for TÜRSAB members, providing professional development and certification programs for travel-agency professionals.
• TÜRSAB TV Digital television service of TÜRSAB broadcasting through the website and YouTube channel, featuring live streams and programs about tourism-industry news and developments.
• TÜRSAB Rota Travel route-planning or destination-guidance service offered by TÜRSAB for travel agencies and tourists.
• Dijital Doğrulama Sistemi (DDS) Digital verification system for authenticating travel-agency credentials and documents.
• Araç Belgelendirme (Karekodlu Plaka) Vehicle-certification system using QR-code-enabled license plates for tour buses and vehicles used by member travel agencies.
• TÜRSAB Kimlik Kartı Identity-card system for verified travel-agency members and professionals.
• TÜRSAB Meeting Point On-site service at Sabiha Gökçen International Airport providing reception and orientation services to address problems faced by member travel agencies.
• TÜRSAB Mobil Uygulama Mobile application for TÜRSAB members providing access to association services via smartphone.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Turkish Airlines (THY)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTurkish Airlines partnership conducting webinars with travel agencies on THY support processes, providing information on airline services for agency operations.
• Optimed Sağlık Hizmetleri A.Ş.minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership providing 25% discounted health services to TÜRSAB Card holders and their first-degree relatives for illness and/or accident cases.
• T.C. Cumhurbaşkanlığı Milli Saraylar İdaresi BaşkanlığıminorOthersPresidential National Palaces Administration providing updates on palace visit procedures and ticket prices for tour packages.
• T.C. Çevre, Şehircilik ve İklim Değişikliği BakanlığıminorOthersMinistry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change providing geographic data permission applications relevant to tourism operations.

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• ASTA (American Society of Travel Advisors): US national association for travel advisors, providing industry representation, professional certification, and member benefits that mirror TÜRSAB's mandate for Turkish travel agencies, including advocacy, training programs, and identity/credential systems.
• ECTAA (European Travel Agents' and Tour Operators' Association): European federation of national travel agent and tour operator associations — of which TÜRSAB is a member. Provides EU-level policy advocacy and industry representation that complements national trade bodies like TÜRSAB.
• ABTA (Association of British Travel Agents): UK's national travel association representing travel agents and tour operators, providing advocacy, training, member verification, and consumer protection services that directly parallel TÜRSAB's role in Turkey. Both operate as statutory trade bodies with member extranets and dispute resolution.
• DRV (Deutscher Reiseverband): German national travel industry association representing travel agencies and tour operators, with similar trade body functions, training, lobbying, and member service portfolio. Comparable to TÜRSAB as one of the most established national travel agency associations in Europe.
• UFTAA (United Federation of Travel Agents' Associations): Global federation of national travel agent associations, of which TÜRSAB is a member. Provides international professional standards, advocacy, and cross-border coordination analogous to TÜRSAB's role at the national level in Turkey.
• JATA (Japan Association of Travel Agents): Japanese national travel agency association providing industry representation, training, certification, and outbound/inbound tourism coordination. Operates with a comparable statutory and trade body mandate to TÜRSAB for its domestic market.

Regional players

• TAAI (Travel Agents Association of India): Indian national travel agents association providing similar trade body representation, advocacy, and member services. Comparable to TÜRSAB in mandate, but operates in the Indian market and does not directly overlap in geography.

Broad incumbents

• IATA (International Air Transport Association): Global airline industry association providing industry standards, training, accreditation, and the Billing and Settlement Plan that travel agencies interact with daily. Overlaps with TÜRSAB on agency accreditation and training, but operates at much larger international scale across the broader aviation value chain.
• UNWTO (UN World Tourism Organization): United Nations specialized agency responsible for the promotion of responsible, sustainable, and universally accessible tourism. Overlaps with TÜRSAB's tourism statistics, country/city reporting, and policy advocacy mandate, but at a global intergovernmental level rather than national trade body scope.
• CLIA (Cruise Lines International Association): International cruise industry association providing trade body, training, and advocacy services to cruise-focused travel agency members. Shares the trade association model with TÜRSAB but is narrowly focused on the cruise vertical of the broader travel industry.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/tursaborgtr
• YouTubeyoutube.com/tursabtv
• Facebookfacebook.com/tursaborgtr
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/tursaborgtr
• Instagraminstagram.com/tursaborgtr

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Türsab