We believe these are some important, practical facts that
YOU SHOULD KNOW BEFORE YOU VISIT TO TURKEY
First of all, before any thing else... check your passport if it is valid at least for 3 months. Your stay in Turkey as a tourist is limited up to 3 months.
If you need a visa and you didn't get it through a Turkish Consulate, please be prepared to pay exact amount of $45.00 USD for an entry visa. This can be paid at any port of entry into the country Stamp Visa or any consulate worldwide.
No immunization shots are required for travel within Turkey.
The national monetary unit is the 'Yeni Turkish Lira'(YTL), 'New Turkish Lira'.
The exchange rates for foreign currencies are published daily in every bank and privite sector's exchange places. In Turkey there are private sector's exchange businesses in operation. The best exchange rates can be usually found there.
Banks are open between 8:30 to 12:00 Monday through Friday. Closed Saturdays and Sundays. But in some touristic area banks are kept open 7 days a week and for afternoon hours too.
Check our main page (left column on home page) for actual exchange rate through the Internet.
Eurocheque and other major traveler's cheques can be cashed easily in every bank and Postal Service units(PTT), with proper identification.
The exchange slips for the conversion of foreign currency into Turkish LIRA should be kept, since you may be required to show these, when reconverting your Turkish Lira back into foreign currency and also when taking souvenirs out of the country (to prove that they have been purchased with legally exchanged foreign currency).
ATMs are common in most cities, towns and resorts. ATMs are mostly connected to worldwide cash point networks such as Cirrus or Plus systems.
Major credit cards and travelers checks are widely accepted by larger businesses. However most small businesses still prefer good old cash.
In fact sometimes you might purchase the same item for less, if you pay cash.
In Turkey has same time zone all over the country. Local time in Turkey are:
April-September: GMT + 3 hrs.
October-March: GMT + 2 hrs.
Emergency service telephone numbers in Turkey:
155-Police,
112-Medical Emergency(First aid),
110-Fire,
118-Information(Unknown numbers),
161-PTT(Turkish Postal Service) Information
The electrical current is 220 volts, 50 cycle's alternating current (AC) all around Turkey. Wall outlets take standard round continental type plugs. The voltage is clearly marked on all hotel outlets.
Tap water is safe to drink in all cities as it has been chlorinated for sanitation reasons. Because of this, you might not like how it does smell. Bottled drinking water is available in almost everywhere. Btw; you can safely brush your teeth with tap water.
If you will drive in Turkey, you must obtain an International Driving Permit (IDP). The IDP is a special licence that allows travellers with a valid Canadian driver's licence to drive in over 160 countries without a specific test. Contact your local AAA office to pick up an application or have one mailed to you. An IDP is valid for one year from the date of issue.
Doctors and dentists can be found in major hospitals and as in individual businesses. There are certain foreign-operated hospitals in Istanbul. See the list
Almost all pharmacies in Turkey are individually owned and operated.
In Turkey weights and liquid measurements are in metric system.
While visiting any of the Mosques in Turkey, it is required that women are required to cover their heads with a scarf and naked parts of their legs and shoulders. If you do not have a scarf, please ask at the entrance. In most cases you might get one free, while you will use it during your visit.
Silence is required inside the mosques, it is suggested that you shouldn't laugh loudly inside as this may offend people praying. Please respect religious and social traditions to avoid offending local sensitivities.
There are no chairs or benches in a mosque, only carpets. A Turkish mosque is often covered from wall to wall with several layers of carpets.
Most of the mosques are closed to visits at prayer times.
All public restrooms are out of the Mosque... around the Mosque. Do not look for inside!
If you're planning to travel over the period of a Religious holiday, make sure you've got your tickets & your stays booked in advance and also if are you traveling by your own transportation please be very careful on the road, highways are so much busy day and night!
During holidays, like in every where else, Turkish people travel most, but majority use inter city bus transportations, therefore highways and all the roads becomes extremely busy. Also majority of small businesses keeps their door close for business... especially in small cities. This might effect your travel plan. For example Istanbul's famous Grand Bazaar is always close at least the first and second days of any Religious holiday.
Turkey has zero tolerance in drug policy. Sale, traffic or use of drugs is strictly forbidden by Turkish Law.
Please keep in mind that; if you visit a Turkish family, in general, Turks take their shoes off upon entering a house. Thus, the dust and dirt of the outdoors are not tracked inside. In most houses the family keeps some extra pairs of terlik (slippers) for their guest.
Exporting antiques from Turkey is absolutely forbidden. Antiques brought into the country must be registered in the owner's passport to avoid difficulties upon exit.
It should be remembered that Turks are by nature a modest nation, and find other people's nudity is offensive. Topless sunbathing actually contravenes the Turkish obscenity law; albeit a law not enforced on foreign visitors but please respect Turks' traditions.
Ministry of Tourism Offices and travel agents can provide professional interpreters/guides. Travel agents are obligated to provide professional interpreters/guides on all their tours.
Some of the foreign newspapers are always available in large cities book stores and tourist areas.
Turks as a nation love to drink water and in Turkey spring water is served everywhere, even on inter city buses.
Turkey has a well developed telecommunication system. You can easily call any country in the world using the public telephone. The telephone calls from the hotels are quite expensive that's why it is recommended to use PTT telephone cards both for domestic and long distance calls.
Public telephones takes tokens (called JETON) and phone cards which can be bought from any Post Office (PTT).
JETONS (the tokens)comes in three sizes; small for local calls, large for international calls and medium which can be used for either.
Local and international calls can usually made with no problems at all.
Telephoning from your hotel room might be expensive, alternative would be to use the public phones available out on the streets, or in some hotel lobbies. All you need is to buy a telephone card from PTT Office (Turkish Post Office), which comes in 30, 60 and 100 units.
AT&T, MCI and SPRINT have international services that make calling home relatively affordable and convenient and let you avoid hotel surcharges. Before you go, call the company of choice to learn the number you must dial in Turkey to reach its network!
Note:
In Turkey Post Office called a PTT(Post-Telephone-Telegraph) and any PTT branch of PTT can easily recognizable by their yellow PTT signs. By a PTT in addition to mailing letters and sending packages or telegrams, you can also make local distance and foreign phone calls. All PTT offices now also have fax and telex services.
As we are talking about PTT here, let me include this too: Stamp collectors will be delighted with the wide range of special Turkish stamps available to them.
In Turkey toilets may be oriental or western style. Meanwhile, usually older buildings and public toilets have their in oriental style.
In Turkey, next to every Mosque, always there is public toilet. In the homes, restaurants/hotels/motels and other businesses mostly there are western style, or both toilets are in place. With western toilets small water pipes coming from the back of the toilets are for water to cleanse with providing a simplified bidet. Toilet paper is used just for drying. Therefore, since paper is not thought to be absolutely necessary, you might not find enough in all public facilities.
Finally... Don't worry, in each touristic hotel/motel/restaurant etc, there are western toilets with toilet paper.
Please look around, in all public toilets(restrooms), you'll see a very visible sign for the fee(s).
Btw; in some cases... if you are in a restaurant, tea garden , museum or/and archaeological site etc., even you are a customer of that place, restrooms requires a fee. So, please remember this and it is always a good idea to keep some changes with you!
Turks use many form of body Languages. For example; in many times you might meet someone who says you 'EVET' (eh-veht)... which means YES, by nodding his/her head forward and down. They also say 'HAYIR' (hay-yurh)... which means NO, by nod their heads up and back, lifting their eyebrows at the same time. >> Read more...
Everywhere in Turkey there are lots of taxi cubs and they are ready to serve you. Taxis are easily recognizable by their yellow and black checker-board band around the cub and each taxi is metered.
Taxis charges in two different tariffs: Daytime and overnight. Overnight tariff, which is applies after midnight, till morning 6 am and will cost to customer 50% more than daytime fare. Additional expenses like ferryboat or bridge crossing fees are extra to passengers. Tipping is not necessary, however leaving the change or rounding up the fare is customary.
In Istanbul, if you have problem with taxi cub and it's fare, call this number to complain: 212-283-6546
Crossing the streets in big cities can be a big problem for you. Please before you do that, look for street cross for pedestrians or if there is nor existed make sure that the car or whatever is at a reasonable distance to allow you cross the street safely. In Turkey, cars have the privilege to use the streets unless they stopped for red light. Although this is the general rule but some drivers unfortunately don't act respectfully.
If you like to send home something from Turkey, you can do that by PTT (Turkish Postal Service), UPS or DHL. You might want to keep information below handy!
UPS UPS Turkey website
Istanbul - Karakoy branch: Ph. 212-3938219 & 2514069
Istanbul - Sirkeci branch: Ph. 212-5197662 & 5197663
Istanbul - Kadikoy branch: Ph. 216-4494447 & 3492035
Istanbul - Levent branch: Ph. 212- 3179097 & 3179098
Istanbul - Sultanahmet branch. 212-5174102 , 6384865 & 6384877 Email
Istanbul - Airport branch: Ph. 212-4680300 Email
Antalya branch: Ph. 4440033 Email
Izmir branch: Ph. 4440033
Izmir Airport: Ph. 4440033 Email
DHL (International Deliveries) DHL website
Yalcin Kores Cad. No.20
Yenibosna, Istanbul / Turkey 34540
Ph. (212) 478 10 00
Fax: (212) 478 14 00 & 01
Most of the restaurants display their food in windows, or waiters can bring the samples if you request. Also, the menu that shows available food can be found at your table, in tourist areas in English as well.
Almost all the restaurants adds to your bill 10 or 15% service charge automatically, so when are you in a restaurant, it's not necessary to leave more than a few coins in the change plate, but in luxury and expensive restaurants, tipping is customary... even if a 10 or 15% service charge is added to your bill, you're expected to give around 5% to the waiter directly and perhaps the same amount to the maitre d'.
In where ever you do stay... in your hotel, motel, pension, resort,etc. , porters and/or parking lot attendees expect a dollar or equivalent so; in taxis you might like to round up the bill.
Cellular Telephones entering the country must be accompanied by a certification form showing ownership. Ownership must be documented in the passport of the owner and will be checked on entry and exit.
For more information you might want to contact the Turkish Ministry of Transportation, General Directorate at: (312) 212 35 72 & 212 60 10 Fax: (312) 221 32 26
If you found this website useful and believe that you know others also enjoy this, please pass the word on. Thank you! / Tesekkür ederiz!
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