Following the catastrophic earthquake that wrecked thousands of buildings in Turkey and Syria, killing thousands of people and injuring more, those with plans to travel to these two countries, especially Turkey, which is a major tourism destination, attracting 44.6 million foreign arrivals in 2022, according to Turkish government statistics, may have to place their trips on hold.
  
Already, Turkish Airlines, the national flag carrier of Turkey, has canceled hundreds of flights over the last few days. Adana Airport is closed until further notice, while the nearby Hatay Airport (HTY) has also been shut due to a damaged runway. Hence travellers with plans to visit any of the impacted regions have been advised to contact the airline for updates.

With the rescue team still scouting for survivors and death toll rising by the day, many would-be visitors who have booked with key resorts and cities, particularly in popular coastal winter sun destinations, are now compelled to either cancel plans or opt for a new destination.
  
While travelers have been advised by their governments to avoid travel to areas affected by the earthquake, those traveling to the leading tourism destinations far from the hit areas have remained unaffected.

The earthquake, which was one of the strongest to hit the region in more than a century, affected approximately 10 Turkish provinces: Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Gaziantep, Hatay, Kahramanmaras, Kilis, Malatya, Osmaniye and Sanliurfa.
  
The ancient Gaziantep Castle, one of the Turkish city’s most renowned landmarks, was severely damaged due to the earthquake. According to reports, the earthquake destroyed some of the bastions in the east, south and southeast parts of the historical Gaziantep Castle in the central Şahinbey district, the debris was scattered on the road. The city of Aleppo, already ravaged by 11 years of civil war, was among the most affected areas of northwestern Syria, where more than four million people were already relying on humanitarian assistance.
  
Turkey shares its longest common border with Syria; various geographic and historical links also tie the two neighbouring countries together. The border between the Syrian Arab Republic and the Republic of Turkey is about 909 kilometres and runs from the Mediterranean Sea in the west to the tripoint with Iraq in the east. It runs across Upper Mesopotamia for some 400 kilometres, crossing the Euphrates and reaching as far as the Tigris. Much of the border follows the Southern Turkish stretch of the Baghdad Railway, roughly along the 37th parallel between the 37th and 42nd eastern meridians. In the west, it almost surrounds the Turkish Hatay Province, partly following the course of the Orontes River and reaching the Mediterranean coast at the foot of Jebel Aqra.