Turkey

MRSTITTLEMOUSE

Is it better to change money in Turkey rather than before we go.
Also what's the cost of stuff out there.
How much do you reckon will do for spending money for a week for two.
Resort is all inclusive but we plan to go on excursions daily.
Thanks.

de1amo

best to change money in a 'doviz'/exchange bureau once you get there--they often double up as gold brokers-i exchanged some money on thursday and got 2,53 a pound which i would guess is higher than the uk at present--i live in turkey and never exchange in the uk when i go home!
Toiletries are expensive here and electrical goods so avoid them--the bazaar is the best place to bag a clothing bargain(they are street markets that move about the areas)--there is a site called turkish living that has a forum to ask questions

apt

Often the excursions are priced in sterling or euros. Prices in Turkey have gone up a lot in the last couple of years and some areas (e.g. Bodrum) are more expensive than others. If you are doing trips eveyday maybe you will need £300-£400 for a couple. It's usually cheaper to change money in Turkey. You can also get sterling or euros out of many ATMs as well as Turkish lira.

majjak

Have just got back this week from Antalya. We changed some lira before we went (2.43 to the £ at travel agents) and we changed some in the hotel when we were over there (2.1 to the £) so it varies a lot. We didn't exchange at the shops in towns but they had good rates as de1amo said. Most things are in Euros but we used lira the whole time.

Bazaars are the best place to buy things, make sure you haggle and don't ever pay the first price they give you ! It's lots of fun, can recommend the market at Mavagat (sp?) and Side if you're going that way.

Travel wise, get the Dolmus (little mini-buses), much cheaper than paying for taxis but you have to be brave as they're very crowded and you need to know where you're getting off.

Re: duty frees, ciggies are very very cheap at the moment, perfume is just as pricey if not more so than UK and booze is bit pricey too - probably cheaper to get it on the plane, they have some good deals.

HTH, enjoy your holiday ! xx

PompeyPete

Going D-i-Y to Istanbul, Antalya and Side in 4 weeks.
EasyJet to Istanbul, and Pegasus Air to Antalya
Staying in lovely locally run B&Bs, much more freedom, and our money will be going to local people.
Changing sterling at a dovis. Before you change check whether commission is payable, and check your money before you leave the counter
Be doing all our trips by dolmus or public bus, it's great mixing with the locals, and cheap as chips.

Pollycat

MrsTittlemouse
check out Tripadvisor and Holidaytruths for advice on costs of excursions from your resort.

Both have very helpful Turkey forums.

Ponkle22

Depends where you are going to stay. Depends whether there is an exchange place nearby.

We take enough money for a few days as we have to travel half an hour to get to a big town, plus you need a couple of days to acclimistise to the intense heat (height of summer for us).

We would then use our nationwide card to draw money from our bank. However, now its no longer going to be zero fee we need to re-think this.

Some areas prefer Euros.

Hope this helps.

b1505

What part of Turkey are you going to? I went last summer and the excursions were quite pricey because we booked through our tour rep...however we did notice the same ones in the town being offered at pretty much half the price so it pays to look around. Drinks on a night out also varied as most of the spirits on offer are imported therefore making them expensive. Most places were charging 12 lira for a vodka and lemonade (although they were extremely generous with the vodka).

Kedi_Yavrusu

Change your money when you get there, you will get a much better exchange rate. Otherwise get lira from the ATMs there. Don't book trips through your rep as you will pay a lot more and get exactly the same trip as you would booking through a local travel agent.

I don't agree that toilettries are expensive, if you buy Turkish brands they are cheap enough, obvioulsy if you buy importes brands then they will be more expensive though, also if you go to the big supermarkets you will pay a lot less than the ones in or by the hotels.

de1amo

being a non European country i wouldnt trust what goes into Turkish own brands because there is no regulation!--i know the local toothpastes are carp but you pays your money....-i buy a years worth of colgate in the uk-its half the price.
i live in izmir which is turkeys 3rd city but much cheaper than istanbul--it is near epheus and pergamon which are both worth a gander.
My local doviz charges no commision and is pretty close to the best rates on the fx sites here--they take 5pc by offering reduced rates when you actually want to deal--i have a pound account here in turkey that i transfer sterling into from hsbc---they dont charge and then i deal locally--but this is long term large amounts--as a tourist i would just stuff my pocket full of cash and exchange here---anything left over i would exchange to gold--the pound is high and gold is good value at the moment in turkey

Kedi_Yavrusu

Well I never had a problems with Turkish brands while I was living and my husband has been using them all his life so I wouldn't worry too much about it ;-)