Travelling To Turkey

Entry into Turkey

You do not need any vaccinations to enter Turkey from the UK. On arrival at the airport, you will have to purchase a Turkish entry visa which currently costs £10 sterling and lasts for three months

Money

The national currency of Turkey is the Turkish Lira. Exchange rates have over recent years fluctuated between 2.2 and 2.8 liras to one-pound sterling. Most items, including food and clothes, are cheaper than the UK. Notable exceptions are cars and petrol – both taxed heavily. The cash points of various Turkish banks are widely available in airports and towns big and small. There is a nominal charge made to UK credit and debit cards.

Food

The tradition breakfasts in Turkey, Kahvalti, will consist of fresh bread, eggs, tomatoes, cucumber, olives, slices of meat and white cheese. Popular restaurant food includes: “Mezes” small starters such as Green melon, aubergine puree, salads (cucumber, tomatoes, raw onion, lemon and olive oil), fried vegetables with garlic & tomato sauce, diced aubergine, potatoes, green pepper, white cheese, kidney bean with tomato sauce, green bean with tomato and olive oil sauce. Delicious soups, “Chorba” such as chicken, lentil and noodle. Lamb, beef and chicken Kebabs (but not as we know them in the UK) different regions in Turkey have different varieties of Kebab, Adana and Iskender. Meat balls, “Kofte”, mousakka and usually fresh, locally caught fish.

Useful language

In Turkey, most Turkish people speak a little English, especially those working in tourist destinations and restaurants. The exceptions to this are villagers living in remoter locations. It is always a good idea to buy a little phrasebook to help you get by. We have given you a start with a few useful Turkish phrases:

Hi : selam, merhaba
My name is : ismim
Nice to meet you : memnun oldum
Do you speak English : inglizce konusuyor musunuz? (een-gee-leez-je ko-noo-shore moo-soo-nooz)
Good morning : Gunaydin
Have a nice day : iyi gunler
Bye : Gule gule
Please : Lutfen
Sorry : Afedersiniz
Excuse me : Bakar misiniz
Slow : Yavas
Water : Su