Please find below some latest info and advices to make travel to Turkey easier for you.
Travelling is the best between April and the end of October whereas July and August are hot in Turkey.
Istanbul is likely to be hot and humid in summers, cold and rainy in the winters. The South and West coasts are mild in the winters and hot in the summers. It is possible to swim along either coast from late April into October. North is mild and damp, with a rainfall of 90 inches per year. Central and Eastern Anatolia can be very cold in the winters, hot, dry weather, but cool in the evenings in summers.
You must a valid passport and a visa that you can get online www.evisa.gov.tr to enter Turkey and for stays of up to 90 days.
We recommend bringing a scarf or shawl that will cover the hair (and shoulders, if you are wearing a sleeveless shirt) when entering mosques for the ladies. If you travel for archaeological ruins, you shall bring sunscreen.
The official language, spoken across the country, is Turkish with only minor regional differences in accent.
English, German and French are also generally spoken, especially in the major tourist areas.
The currency is the Turkish Lira (TL) that you can buy from exchange offices that are widely around or ATM that can be found in most towns. Banknotes exist in denominations TL10, TL20, TL50, TL100 and TL200, and coins from 25 and 50 cents to TL1.
Visa and MasterCard are acceptable in all hotels and most restaurants, as well as the larger shops.
The electrical current in Turkey is 220 volts, 50 cycles alternating current (AC). You may need to have a voltage converter and an adapter since there are European-type plugs, with two or three round prongs..
Turkish cuisine is largely the extension of Ottoman cuisine, blended of Mediterranean, Middle Eastern, Central Asian and Balkan cuisines, which are usually made with local ingredients.
Characteristically, meals have variety of hot or cold mezes, having a few salads as well as fresh bread and dips as hummus, a spicy pepper and walnut paste called acuka, and an eggplant and garlic mix as a starter; Fresh Fish, meat (lamb, beef or chicken) with rice, grains or bread are main course; and desserts as Baklava. Off course none of the Turkish Meals finish without Turkish Tea or Turkish Coffee, appearing on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
Moreover Turkish wine is superb and Turkey is the fourth largest producer of grapes in the world.
Tipping is a part of Turkish culture, particularly in the service industry and expected by guides, drivers and porters, assisting you during your travel.
We recommend tipping your guide approximately 6. – EURO per person per day and half for your driver.
For up-to-date information, please refer to the Travel Alerts and Warnings Websites of your Governments.