When we first decided to bring WAYANA to life, our excitement was sky-high. We even drew up a roadmap and opened our doors only after completing everything that roadmap demanded. Still, somewhere deep down, we sensed that this roadmap would evolve once the journey actually began. Now, more than three years later, looking back makes it much clearer how that path has shifted. One of the most striking changes has been the rise in Turkey’s wine-grape diversity. The way this shift has reshaped WAYANA itself, and the potential it holds for Turkey’s wine and tourism sectors, is the focus of this piece.

How Tourism in Turkey Has Changed

Turkey entered the tourism arena through the familiar “sun-sea-sand” trio and succeeded in building the investments needed to support that identity. If we summarize the transformation of Turkish tourism in ten-year intervals up to the pandemic, the speed of change almost makes your head spin:

After the pandemic struck in 2020, Turkish tourism stalled like everywhere else. But the rebound that followed was astonishing:

Compared to 1980, the number of visitors has increased fifty-fold. Tourism revenue has multiplied by 180. Hard not to say “That’s incredible.”

Where Does Wine Fit into Tourism?

Realistically, wine has never held a meaningful place in Turkey’s tourism strategy. Even before the government’s political priorities became this pronounced, wine tourism was nowhere on the agenda. After the Trakya Vineyard Route project (notably avoiding the word “wine”), the subject quickly disappeared from public policy. Today, when you visit museums, you won’t find a single artifact label using the word “wine,” even when the objects clearly relate to it.

And yet, we are in a period where the importance of gastronomy for tourism is finally being recognized. With state encouragement, organizations like Michelin have begun operating in Turkey and expanding their influence. At the same time, we see a noticeable shift: wine is increasingly understood not as an alcoholic beverage but as part of the meal. It’s no coincidence that Iter Vitis, one of the Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe dedicated to European wine and vine heritage, is now supported by Turkey’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

Following Trakya, new vineyard routes emerged through civic initiatives: Urla, Çal, and Lydia. With work underway in Cappadocia and Troy, this number will soon grow. Even more notably, development agencies have reentered the picture. All this points to a significant shift: the minimum conditions for wine to claim a legitimate place within tourism are forming.

A Micro-Experience: What Did WAYANA Do?

WAYANA was built on a realization: the globally accepted service model in the wine world no longer meets the expectations of wine lovers. We rejected the long-standing assumption that wine must be served by the bottle and that only a few wines may be offered by the glass.

That model didn’t serve wine lovers. It frustrated us personally, so we assumed others felt the same. We made a principled decision: every wine on our menu should be available by the glass. We hoped people would embrace it. They did, though not as quickly as we imagined. Two years after opening, we started to see how this approach repositioned WAYANA as something distinct.

Our second major conviction came from recognizing a peculiarly Turkish irony: Turkey is a world leader in grape diversity. Our collection vineyards hold 1,459 registered varieties. Yet we still don’t know how many are suitable for winemaking. What looks like a shortcoming today became an opportunity for WAYANA. Not long ago, in 2022, Turkey had roughly 50–60 winemaking grapes. Today the number is 83. At WAYANA, we serve wines from 75 of these grapes (the missing ones simply have no current vintage). This alone reveals a massive untapped opportunity for Turkish tourism.

A Changing Profile: Wine Lovers and Travelers

Everyone has heard the story by now: wine consumption is declining globally. Poorly managed supply-demand balances are seeking a new equilibrium. When that stabilizes, the gloom will lift. But the preferences of wine drinkers are also evolving: lower consumption, lower alcohol, more intention, more curiosity. Tourism trends mirror this shift. The older generation’s instinct to run straight into the sea is giving way to a desire to discover cultural value.

The New Focus: Not Drinking Wine, but Discovering Grapes and Stories

In last week’s newsletter we shared the export performance of our two neighbors, Greece and Georgia. Their wine journeys contain lessons for us, no doubt. But we possess something they don’t: hundreds of grapes no one has heard of, each waiting to be discovered, and brand-new wines emerging from them every year.

Turkey has exactly what today’s experience-driven, discovery-oriented generation seeks. These travelers—digital nomads, culinary explorers, curious wanderers—see wine not as alcohol but as an essential companion to food. For them, Turkish wines are a magnet.

We see this at WAYANA constantly. Even though we are not located in a tourist district, we host visitors who plan their day around experiences like ours and leave astonished by the grapes—and the wines—they encounter. It takes a lot of work to honor their curiosity, but we’ve never regretted a single moment.

Final Word

Turkey has never fully valued or understood its identity as a land of grapes and wine. Yet it has producers who care deeply, who believe that discovering new grapes is vital both for their work and for the country’s cultural wealth.

The global shift unfolding today offers a rare opportunity.

We can use it to strengthen both Turkish winemaking and Turkish tourism. Will we?