Travel to Turkey

zagfles

PompeyPete said:

Turkish Lira is the legal currency in Turkey.  It's illegal (unlawful) for ANY trader not to accept Lira in payment for anything.....simple as!

Well that's a random strawman. Nobody said you can't pay in Lira did they? The discussion is about the best value, what traders prefer etc.

PompeyPete

zagfles said:

PompeyPete said:

Turkish Lira is the legal currency in Turkey.  It's illegal (unlawful) for ANY trader not to accept Lira in payment for anything.....simple as!

Well that's a random strawman. Nobody said you can't pay in Lira did they? The discussion is about the best value, what traders prefer etc.

The best value IS to pay in Turkish Lira!  What traders prefer has been made patently obvious, but that doesn't mean Tourists need to all act like sheep.  

zagfles

PompeyPete said:

zagfles said:

PompeyPete said:

Turkish Lira is the legal currency in Turkey.  It's illegal (unlawful) for ANY trader not to accept Lira in payment for anything.....simple as!

Well that's a random strawman. Nobody said you can't pay in Lira did they? The discussion is about the best value, what traders prefer etc.

The best value IS to pay in Turkish Lira!  What traders prefer has been made patently obvious, but that doesn't mean Tourists need to all act like sheep.  

Well I had to partially pay for a tour priced in GBP in Lira, because I didn't have enough GBP. It would have been better value to pay fully in GBP, but I couldn't. There wasn't a lot in it and the tour was cheap so it wasn't a big deal. But statements that you always get better value paying in Lira are wrong. That would be acting like a sheep rather than working out what's best in each case.

Best advice is to have both GBP and Lira, know the exchange rate and pay in whichever is the best value. But as a general rule, if something is priced in a particular currency, paying in another currency will require a conversion which is likely to be in the retailer's favour.

It's different in countries like Croatia where things aimed at tourists are often displayed priced in EUR but they don't actually accept EUR for payment! In Turkey they mean it - if priced in GBP they accept GBP.

PompeyPete

zagfles said:

PompeyPete said:

zagfles said:

PompeyPete said:

Turkish Lira is the legal currency in Turkey.  It's illegal (unlawful) for ANY trader not to accept Lira in payment for anything.....simple as!

Well that's a random strawman. Nobody said you can't pay in Lira did they? The discussion is about the best value, what traders prefer etc.

The best value IS to pay in Turkish Lira!  What traders prefer has been made patently obvious, but that doesn't mean Tourists need to all act like sheep.  

Well I had to partially pay for a tour priced in GBP in Lira, because I didn't have enough GBP. It would have been better value to pay fully in GBP, but I couldn't. There wasn't a lot in it and the tour was cheap so it wasn't a big deal. But statements that you always get better value paying in Lira are wrong. That would be acting like a sheep rather than working out what's best in each case.

Best advice is to have both GBP and Lira, know the exchange rate and pay in whichever is the best value. But as a general rule, if something is priced in a particular currency, paying in another currency will require a conversion which is likely to be in the retailer's favour.

It's different in countries like Croatia where things aimed at tourists are often displayed priced in EUR but they don't actually accept EUR for payment! In Turkey they mean it - if priced in GBP they accept GBP.

I don't agree with you about the TL v €uro v GB£.  If you look on the TA Turkey or it's sub-forums the DEs on there will disagree with you too.  I'll be going on my 15th trip to Turkey as soon as I can, and have always paid in TL, though I admit to travelling around by dolmus and mixing with the locals rather that buying Tours and being herded round.

So far as Croatia is concerned, I've seen passengers on the airport shuttle bus between Split Airport and the downtown pay for their fare in €uro.

You'll also find that you can pay in some places - private accommodation, taxis - in €uros. BUT that is purely on an unofficial basis.  No business in Croatia is required to accept any currency other than Kuna.  In any case I suspect those that do are offering a lousy exchange rate.....I suspect this happens regularly in Dubrovnik and Split with many of the Cruise ship passengers.

zagfles

I've found TA is great for destination specific travel advice, but not so good for the financial aspects, after all the DEs are Destination Experts not MoneySaving Experts!

Another tip to get better value is learn a bit of the language, I've tried this in a few languages but I've found Turkish one of the easiest to learn the pleasantries, the numbers and phrases like "how much" etc, and to pronounce stuff well enough to be understood, and understand the answers. (I put a lot more effort into Russian but failed miserably).

Useful off the beaten track mainly but can be useful even at major tourist attractions, I got into the toilets half price at ephesus for instance . Found loads of friendly bar staff happy to help us learn. Also a few useful swear words. (mild ones I hope, they seemed to work when hassled in markets and I've not been punched yet...).

Ganga

When we go to a favourite hotel in Antalya i always tip in Euros ,mainly because i have some in my wallet from european holidays and the staff welcome them no bother ,some of the guests tip in £s and the bell boys often ask if we have £10 notes as i suspect they cannot bank coins

Doshwaster

Ganga said:

When we go to a favourite hotel in Antalya i always tip in Euros ,mainly because i have some in my wallet from european holidays and the staff welcome them no bother ,some of the guests tip in £s and the bell boys often ask if we have £10 notes as i suspect they cannot bank coins

Yes, Euro and Sterling coins are next to worthless. When I stopped in an AI hotel in Marmaris, the reps were selling bags of pound coins that they had been given in tips to people going home in exchange for any leftover Lira or Sterling notes. 

PompeyPete

Personally, as all I use is Turkish Lira then I tip in Turkish Lira, be it small notes or coins.  The lucky beneficiary has no need to get them converted into Lira and can simply spend the loot there and then.

Like Doshwater I've been approached by locals wanting to change a bag full of GP£ coins that they've received in tips, which are basically useless to them until they've converted them to Turkish Lira.....I declined.  I don't quite understand why any self respecting British tourist would want to buy a plastic bag full of GB£ coins.....apart from the weight, they could be fake!

zagfles

PompeyPete said:

Personally, as all I use is Turkish Lira then I tip in Turkish Lira, be it small notes or coins.  The lucky beneficiary has no need to get them converted into Lira and can simply spend the loot there and then.

Like Doshwater I've been approached by locals wanting to change a bag full of GP£ coins that they've received in tips, which are basically useless to them until they've converted them to Turkish Lira.....I declined.  I don't quite understand why any self respecting British tourist would want to buy a plastic bag full of GB£ coins.....apart from the weight, they could be fake!

If you've got left over Lira and are about to go home, it's a good idea! As long as you can recognise a fake of course, that applies to any cash transaction. Saving the Lira till next time is unlikely to be a good idea unless it's in the next few months, given Turkey's inflation rate.

Doshwaster

PompeyPete said:

Personally, as all I use is Turkish Lira then I tip in Turkish Lira, be it small notes or coins.  The lucky beneficiary has no need to get them converted into Lira and can simply spend the loot there and then.

Like Doshwater I've been approached by locals wanting to change a bag full of GP£ coins that they've received in tips, which are basically useless to them until they've converted them to Turkish Lira.....I declined.  I don't quite understand why any self respecting British tourist would want to buy a plastic bag full of GB£ coins.....apart from the weight, they could be fake!

The only time I did buy some was from the holiday rep on the coach back to the airport who was selling bags of £1 coins - and that was more to help her out as they aren't paid a lot so depend on being able to spend their tips. I certainly wouldn't buy bags of coins off a random local.

Otherwise if I have any spare Lira, I will spend as much at the airport or put them in the charity collection on the plane. Unlike more stable currencies there is no point in keeping them for next time. In recent trips abroad I've been using my Starling card more so I find the problem of offloading small denomination currency is less of an issue.