Turkey’s first botanical expo opens in Antalya

The 2016 World Botanical EXPO, one of the largest horticultural shows in the world, opened its doors with an official ceremony on April 22 in the Mediterranean resort of Antalya.

The World Botanical EXPO, which is the first hosted by Turkey in the event’s 160-year history, will last six months, April to October, and will take place on a sprawling, 121-hectare exhibition site. More than 50 countries are expected to participate in the expo, including China, Japan, Nepal, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Qatar, Uganda, Mexico, Zimbabwe, Burundi, the Netherlands, Germany, Hong Kong, Senegal and South Africa, to name but a few. Antalya won its bid in 2009 to host the botanic event of the prestigious Expo 2016. The expo, themed “Flowers and Children,” is meant to promote Turkish history and cultural diversity as well as Turkey’s rich agricultural and economic potential. Reflecting this, the slogan of the event is “A green world for future generations.” It features national and international events such as concerts, congresses and symposiums, dance shows, musicals, plays, workshops, streets shows and special events for national days and the holy month of Ramadan. Up to 8 million visitors are expected to visit the six-month event. More than 1 million season tickets and one day entry cards were already sold for EXPO 2016 Antalya, just days before one of the leading global horticultural exhibitions opens its doors to tourists from Turkey and abroad. Beside green areas, the expo will feature “Turkey’s Eiffel Tower,” a lake, a biodiversity course, a children’s island, a glass bridge, an agriculture and biodiversity museum, a science and technology center for children as well as food courts, amphitheaters, watermills, and gardens from participating countries. The expo will boast 25,000 trees from 120 different species. Besides a 650,000-square-meter green field, there is an 80-square-meter lake on the exhibition site. Some 300,000 square meters are reserved for visitors.