The Bolu mountains are popular with skiers from Istanbul and the capital Ankara and the hotel was operating at high occupancy at the start of two-week school holidays.

The north-western town is about 170km (105 miles) from Ankara.

Although the fire was confined to one hotel, the governor told Turkish media that a neighbouring hotel was evacuated as a precaution.

Ski instructor Necmi Kepcetutan told Turkish TV he had managed to escape because he knew the hotel, while guests who did not know it as well as him were not as fortunate.

“People were shouting at the windows, ‘Save us,’ because there was intense smoke inside. We pulled 20-25 people out,” he told NTV.

The circumstances that led to the fire are not yet clear.

Justice minister Yilmaz Tunc said prosecutors had been allocated to investigate the blaze.