The 18th International Tourism Cartoon Competition is open for entries, inviting artists to explore the visitor experience and balloon tourism in Türkiye’s Cappadocia region. Submissions close on December 31, 2026.

Cappadocia will provide the inspiration for the 18th International Tourism Cartoon Competition, with artists invited to submit works on two themes: “Being a Tourist in Cappadocia” and “Balloon Tourism in Cappadocia.”

Organised this year in cooperation with the Cappadocia Touristic Hoteliers and Operators Association (KAPTİD) and Cappadocia Voyager Balloons, the competition brings together cartoonists from around the world to interpret tourism through humour and visual storytelling.

Launched in 2009, the annual event aims to promote international awareness of tourism through the universal language of cartoons. Its organisers describe it as the world’s only international cartoon competition devoted exclusively to tourism.

Entries are accepted in two categories: Adults, for participants aged 17 and over, and Young Cartoonists, for those aged 16 and under. A preliminary jury will review submissions before a final jury selects the winning works.

Special Awards Honour Two Local Legacies

The Adult category will feature first, second and third prizes, alongside special awards honouring Professor Atila Özer, one of the competition’s founders, and Saffet Yatağan, a pioneer of modern tourism enterprise in Cappadocia.

The Saffet Yatağan Special Award recognises his contribution to the development of tourism in the region. The Young Cartoonists category will also award first, second and third prizes.

All prizewinners will receive a five-day, full-board stay for two in Cappadocia and a balloon ride provided by Cappadocia Voyager Balloons.

A Global Platform for Tourism Cartoons

According to figures supplied by the organisers, the competition’s first 17 editions attracted 12,445 entries from 5,755 cartoonists in more than 60 countries. Over 100 award-winning artists have been hosted in Türkiye, while award ceremonies have taken place in Istanbul, İzmir, Antalya and Şanlıurfa, as well as Petra in Jordan.

The competition has also generated 97 exhibitions. Eight became permanent displays at educational institutions, while others brought cartoons to audiences in airports, hotels, marinas, arts centres, streets and universities.

Collections of shortlisted works, published in print for many years, have more recently been made available digitally. The competition’s website provides information in nine languages.

The organisers report that the Switzerland-based Federation of Cartoonists Organisations (FECO) has awarded the competition a five-star rating since 2011.

Tourism Through an Artist’s Lens

Each edition examines a different aspect of tourism. Previous themes have included all-inclusive holidays, tourism and peace, the future of tourism, travel memories, tourism workers, women in tourism, space tourism, and relations between visitors and local communities.

Recent destination-focused editions explored the experience of being a tourist in Istanbul and the cultural heritage of Şanlıurfa. This year, the two Cappadocia themes invite artists to consider both the broader visitor experience and balloon tourism.

A 19-member international jury will bring together cartoonists and representatives from tourism, media and other organisations in Türkiye, Germany, Bulgaria, China, the United Kingdom and Italy.

The jury members are Abdullah İnal, Ahmet Aykanat, Andrea Pecchia, Arzu Özel, Ba Bilig, Halim Bulutoğlu, Halit Kurtulmuş, Houmayon Mahmoudi, Kerem Köfteoğlu, Maya Tcholakova, Mehmet Kahraman, Mehmet Zeber, Murteza Albayrak, Necdet Yılmaz, Sadık Pala, Sait Munzur, Teyfik Ölmez, Valeriu Kurtu and Vizdan Bulunmaz Özer.

Entries must be submitted by December 31, 2026. Full competition rules and participation details are available at www.tourismcartoon.org.