Anybody here been to Istanbul?

minerva_windsong

Am not sure if I'm asking this in the right place, but me and my boyfriend are going to Istanbul for four nights in September and I'm just wondering how much money we should take with us.

I've never been to Turkey and so I don't really know what the cost of stuff over there is - ie, is it cheap or expensive compared to here? Does it depend on what you get/where you are/how you get around etc?

We're staying in a youth hostel (already booked and paid for) so will probably be eating two or maybe three meals out every day, plus possibly drinks in the day/evening. I'd also like to do a bit of shopping whilst I'm there but am not intending to go mad, so was thinking £150 would cover all of it. Or is that not enough?

Also if anyone has any money saving tips for whilst we're there, or even just general tips of what to see/do etc then please post them!

Thank you!

Bob_the_Saver

Guess you staying somewhere on the 'European side'. Big (big) city so not cheap cheap but not expensive. Good choice for a short medium city break. WATCH OUT FOR THE RIP-OFF shoe shiners, basically all of them-F*** O** should get rid of most of them as it 'translates well', I never had to resort to kicking them but it got close, avoid.
A Ferry trip (NOT A TOURIST CRUISE) is good value. Reasonable meals if you look around.
We loved it.

tutkusmom

Hi,I am from Istanbul,Turkey and i would say £150 would be just about enough for you to eat and drink for two people in Istanbul for 4 days.You probably won't have much cash left for the shopping you would like to do.It is not very cheap in Istanbul,it is almost like going to London for a visit i am afraid.

I would advice you to have a credit or debit card with you just in case if you run out of cash,you don't need to actually use it but just in case you know.

wannaberichbtch

I went to Istanbul at Easter, it's an amazing place, and will definately go back. I didnt find it particularly cheap though especially alcohol, and my tip would be definately ask the price before ordering. The city is well served with public tram, furnicular, ferry, and metro services so getting around cheaply is easy and there are many large sights in the Sultanhamet area. The Grand Bazaar is very impressive but expensive, I liked the Spice Bazaar which seemed more authentic, and one of my favourite sights was the Roman Cistern which was part of Constantines Palace very atmospheric. I think you may struggle a bit on your budget and would take more if you can. I often mention Turkeytravelplanner in my posts but it really is a mine of information.

old_motters

Have you got your transportation to and from the airport sorted?

I think you'll need a bit more if you want to drink... estimate £10 for breakfast, £10 for lunch £20 for dinner £10 a day for drinks/ents.

Have a fantastic time, Istanbul is a trully beguiling city.

never_enough

Sorry no idea about costs now, just ideas of places to visit.
Is the youth hostel in the sultanhamet area? If so I stayed in it several times (but not for years now) & it's well placed for everything, you can walk to most places. Sultanhamet was one of my favourite areas. The Blue Mosque is amazingly beautiful & opposite the Hagia Sophia, also well worth a visit. An entrance to the cisterns is a few steps away. Topkapi Palace is about a 10 minute walk away, it's beautiful but one of the best things is to eat in the cafe, lovely views (food was expensive & not great). On another trip we just took a picnic & ate it in the grounds.
Go to Kadikoy on the Asian side by ferry, you get an amazing view of the train station.
So much to see (I want to go back just thinking of it!) Dolmabahce palace, Galata Bridge, the funicular train (both new & very old), Taksim Square....
I don't know if they still do it but we were under 26 so used an ISIC card to get money of entrances. Not a huge amount, but if you're paying for lots in a day it all helps. You can get one if you're a student over 26 too. Your youth hostel membership *may* give you money off too.
Have a fantastic time.

minerva_windsong

Sorry, should have been a bit clearer - the £150 is just the money that I'm taking to fund myself there, I have no idea how much money my boyfriend's taking. Am now guessing my own spends will be closer on £250-300... *gulp*

Pee

The idea of a card as back up is a good one. For 4 days if you both took £150 each you'd have to be careful, but could have a good time. Any extra you can take is a bonus.

misscomickat

I live in Istanbul and think £150 is plenty for four days.

Your hostel probably includes breakfast, then one meal a day you can get street food/cheap stuff, and just one big meal a day.

Alcohol is really expensive here, if you can give it a miss you will save a lot of money. There isn't really a huge drinking culture anyway.

Public transport is cheap - the equivalent of about 50p per ride. You can get ripped off if you shop in the touristy places..

nm123_2

Hi Minerva Windsong,

I've just booked for my and OH to go over to Istanbul over Christmas (23-27 Dec), so I'd be keen to hear how you get on. We've not booked accommodation either yet, so if the place you stay in is any good, will you let me know?

Thanks!

kawan2

We (2 adults and 1 child) went to Istanbul in May this year. We stayed at Hotel Erboy at Sirkeci. This meant that we can walk to all the tourist sights in Sultanahmet and yet not hear the early calls for prayer from the mosque as mentioned by some people who stayed at the Sultanahmet area. In addition, we ate at local Turkish places (I think we were the only tourists there during lunch time, the rest were all Turkish workmen) as suggested in the Turkeytravelplanner (very informative as also mentioned by wannaberichbtch) website. This really kept the costs down.

We bought an akbil (sort of Pay as you go key ). You need to pay a small deposit. You can get the deposit back if you spend all the money on it. O didn't bother because I plan to give it to relative who will be going to Istanbul in the near future. This one key can be used by all 3 of us. You basically get discounted travel on public transport ie. trams, trains, ferry, funicular and bus.

We were travelling from Sabiha Gokchen airport (not Ataturk airport) to our hotel using public transport as we were in no great hurry. This basically involves using a bus from the airport, catching the ferry at Kadikoy to Eminonou and a tram to the hotel. All this came to less than 5 TL (Turkish Lira) per person. My OH later commented that the public ferry ride was just as good and much better value for money compared to the private river cruise we took later that day.

We used the Hava shuttle bus ( 10TL from Taksim to airport) going home because we wanted to be sure we will catch our flight.

As Turkey is a Muslim country, local Turkish eateries do not serve alcohol. OH bought Efes beer (local beer) from a supermarket to try because I had read on the internet that the beer is not too bad. OH said it tasted like Carlsberg or Heineken. One of these anyhow as I am a non-drinker.

Different tourist sights have different closing days on weekdays. You need to plan your itinerary carefully if there are specific ones that you want to go to.

The Topkapi Palace is value for money. I found out that there was a big diamond and very large emeralds in one of the courtyards at the Topkapi. We went there just when it opened (lots of tour coaches if you go late) and asked a guard where that courtyard was. He couldn't quite understand what I said. However, when I said diamond, his face lit up and he personally led us to the room! It was like a private viewing as we were the only 3 people in that room for the next 5-10 mins looking at all the gems on display before the crowds came.

Hope these help.