MONETARY SYSTEM
The national monetary unit is the Turkish lira (TL.). The coinage is in 5,000, 10,000, 25,000 and 50,000 lira pieces. Bank notes are of 50,000, 100,000 (for a while), 250,000, 500,000 1,000,000, 5.000.000, 10.000.000 and 20.000.000 Turkish Lira. In order to see what they are like, please check our currency page now. The exchange rates for foreign currencies are published daily. Eurochecks can be cashed immediately; so can traveler’s checks upon producing identification. The most widely accepted credit cards are Eurocard, Diner’s Club, Visa and Mastercard. Exchange offices in touristic places are generally open until midnight. For more information:
-Turkiye Bankalar Birligi, Nispetiye Cad., Akmerkez, No: 131 B-3 Blok, Kat: 13-14, 80630 Etiler-Istanbul Tel: (212) 282 09 73 (16 Lines), Fax: (212) 282 09 46.
Note : You may exchange traveler’s checks at Post Offices in touristic places and at certain banks.
POSTAL SYSTEM AND PHONE CALLS
Turkish post offices are easily recognizable by their Turquise & darkblue “Turk Telecom” signs. Major post offices are open 8:00 – 24:00 hrs., Mon.- Sat.; and 9:00-7:00 P.M., Sun. Small post offices have the same hours as government offices (see below). The services they are offering:
Poste restante
Poste restante letters should be addressed “postrestant” to the central post office “Merkez Postanesi”, in the town of your choice. It is only necessary to produce an identification card when collecting your letter. It is possible to use this service for sending or receiving documents from other countries.
Fax Office
It is possible to use this service for sending or receiving documents from other countries. Valuable Dispatch, It is possible to use this service for-sending valuable belongings or valuable important documents.
Other PTT services
It is possible to exchange money at some branches of PTT at the current international exchange rate. International postal orders and traveler’s checks can also be exchanged. An express postal service (Acele Posta Servisi – APS) operates from Turkey to 72 other countries for letters, documents, and small packages. Stamp collectors will be delighted with the wide range of special stamps available to them.
Phone calls
The most economic way to telephone in Turkey is from a Turk Telecom telephone booth (found in all towns). 30, 60 100 Unit Phone Cards for local, intercity, and international calls can be purchased from all Telecom offices & most markets. Nowadays prepaid Global phone cards are also available at Post Offices. Just scratch the sealed section and dial 0 800 number then talk. If you wish we may obtain rental cellular phone for your entire tour. (The information is updated regularly). The credit cards can be used easily as well. GSM system has large coverage area for the users for roaming. Turkcell and Telsim are the GSM operators of Turkey. In the West part, you may also prefer Telestet & Panaphone services for roaming. If you’d like to hire a cellular phone in Turkey, please contact us.
OFFICIAL OPENING TIMES
Government Offices: 8:30 – 12:30 (closed Sat. and Sun., open daily in tourist areas) 13:30 – 17:30
Banks: 8:30 – 12:00 (closed Sat. and-Sun., open daily in tourist areas) 13:30 – 17:00
Shops: 9:30 – 19:00 (In tourist areas, closing times vary, some close around midnight)
Covered Bazaar: Istanbul 8:00 – 19:00 (closed Sun.)
On the first day of the religious holidays ( Seker Bayrami, 3 days and Kurban Bayrami, 4 days) all shops and bazaars, are closed.
Summer Hours
In the Aegean and Mediterranean regions of Turkey, government offices and many other establishments are closed in the afternoon during the summer months. These summer hours are fixed each year by the province governors.
OFFICIAL HOLIDAYS
Jan.1 – New Year’s Day.
Apr.23 – National Independence and Children’s Day.
May.19 – Atatürk Commemoration and Youth and Sports Day.
Aug.30 – Victory Day (final rout of invading forces in 1922).
Oct.29 – Republic Day (anniversary of the declaration of the Turkish Republic).
MUSEUMS
Most Turkish museums are open every day of the week, except Mondays. Palaces are also closed only on Mondays. The famous Topkapi Palace is closed on Tuesdays instead of Mondays. In order to receive permission for photos or films in museums or at ancient ruins, a fee, which varies according to the entrance fee, is charged. The photographing or filming, for commercial use, of yet unpublished objects which are copyrighted, requires a special permit from the general Directorate of Antiquities and Museums. In Ankara most museums are closed on the first day of religious holidays.
JANUARY
Camel Wrestling Festival – Selcuk
MARCH
Ankara International Film Festival
1915 Sea Victory Celebration – Canakkale
APRIL
Istanbul International Film Festival – Istanbul
International Izmir Film Festival
Traditional “Mesir” Festival – Manisa
International Children’s Day – Ankara (April 23)
Tourism Fair – Gaziantep
MAY
Tulip Festival – Istanbul (April-May)
Javelin Games – Erzurum (April-May)
Ankara International Arts Festival (April-May)
International Nysa Culture and Art Festival – Sultanhisar
Efes International Festival of Culture & Tourism – Selcuk
Yunus Emre Culture and Art Week – Eskisehir
Aksu Culture & Art Festival – Giresun
International Music and Folklore Festival – Silifke
International Yachting Festival – Marmaris
International Kilim Festival, Usak – Esme
Kakava Festivities – Kirklareli
JUNE
International Asia-Europe Biennial – Ankara (May-June)
Bartin, Strawberry Festival – Bartin
International Tea Festival – Rize
International Offshore Races Istanbul – Izmir
Foca Music, Folklore and Watersports Festival – Foqa
Marmaris Festival – Marmaris
Bergama Festival – Bergama
Ataturk Culture Festival – Amasya
Kafkasör Culture & Art Festival – Artvin
International Kus Cenneti Culture and Tourism Festival – Bandirma
International Cesme Sea and Music Festival – Cesme
International Pamukkale Song Competition
International Kahta Komagene Festival
International Volleyball Beach Tournament – Alanya
Finike Festival
International Wine Competition – Ürgüp
Tekirdag Cherry Festival
International Izmir Festival (June-July)
International Bursa Festival (June-July)
Istanbul international Art and Culture Festival – Istanbul (June-July)
Traditional Kirkpinar Wrestling – Edirne (June-July)
International Music Festival – Istanbul (June-July)
lhlara Tourism and Art Week – Aksaray (June-July)
JULY
International Erzurum Congress – Erzurum
Tourism & Culture Festival – Iskenderun
International Folk Dance Festival – Samsun
Ceramic Festival – Kfitahya
Nasreddin Hoca Festival – Aksehir
Hittite Festival – Corum
Manavgat Tourism Festival
Kusadasi Tourism Festival
Carpet and Rose Festiva – Isparta
Egirdir Lake Festival
Nevsehir Festival
Devrek Baston and Culture Festival
Avanos International Handicrafts and Pottery Exhibit
AUGUST
Troy Festival – Canakkale
Insuyu Festival – Burdur
Hacibektas Veli Commemoration Ceremony – Hacibektas
Mengen Chefs Festival – Bolu
Pine Grove Ayder Mt. and Archery Festivities – Rize
Handicrafts and Tourism Festival – Avanos
SEPTEMBER
Izmir International Fair – Izmir
Ertugrul Gazi Commemoration Ceremony – Sogut
Seyh Edibali’i Commemoration and Culture Festival – Bilecik
GAP Culture and Art Festival – Gaziantep
Javelin Games – Konya
Kemer Carnival – Kemer
International Meerschaum (White Gold) Festival – Eskisehir
Safranbolu Architectural Treasures and Folklore Week – Safranbolu
Sivas Congress Culture and Art Week – Sivas
International Grape Harvest Festival – Urgup
International Fair – Mersin
Yagci Bedir Carpet Festival – Sindirgi, Balikesir
Culture and Art Festival – Diyarbakir
Assos International Art Festival
Adana Altin Koza Film Festival
OCTOBER
Eskisehir International Festival (Sept.-Oct)
Golden Pistachio Festival – Gazi Antep (Sept.-Oct)
International Plastic Arts Festival- Istanbul (Sep. -Oct.)
International Akdeniz Song Contest – Antalya (Sep. -Oct.)
Mersin Art and Culture Festival – Mersin (Sep. -Oct.)
Altin Portakal Film Festival – Antalya
Ahi Brotherhood Cultural Week – Kirsehir
International Bodrum Cup
International Gullet Biennial – Bozburun
International Triathlon Competition – Alanya
International Ataturk Dam Sailing Competition – Sanli Urfa
NOVEMBER
International Yacht Race – Marmaris
DECEMBER
International St. Nicholas Symposium – Demre, Antalya
Mevlana Commemoration Ceremony – Konya
Australia +9 Japan +6
Germany -1 Netherlands -1
France -1 Austria -1
England -2 Spain -1
Italy -1 USA (Atlantic) -7
MISCELLANEOUS FACTS
Local time : GMT + 2 hrs. (Summer).
Electricity : 220 volts AC, all over Turkey. The voltage is clearly marked on all hotel outlets.
Tap water : Safe to drink in all cities since it has been chlorinated.
Weights and measures : Metric system.
Foreign newspapers: Available in large cities and tourist areas.
Interpreter – guides: Ministry of Tourism Offices and travel agents can provide professional interpreters and guides. Travel agents are obliged to provide a professional interpreter guides on all of their tours.
Doctors and dentists : Doctors and dentists can be found in Turkey’s major hospitals and, in addition, there are certain foreign-operated hospitals in Istanbul
FOREIGN LANGUAGE BROADCASTS ON RADIO AND TELEVISION IN TURKEY
Tourism Radio: Aims at promoting Turkey to foreigners visiting the country from the historical, geographical, social, economic and touristic aspects, to give them practical information as well as current events, and of course music. Air time : Daily from 07:30-12:45 and 6:30-10:00 PM local time.
Transmitters and frequencies on the FM band:
Izmir 101.6 MHz
Antalya 100.6 MHz
Nevsehir 103.0 MHz
Kusadasi 101.9 MHz
Denizli 101.0 MHz
Bodrum 97.4 MHz
Istanbul 101.6 MHz
Marmaris 101.0 MHz
Kalkan 105.9 MHz
News in English, French and German on Tourism Radio, aired daily at 08:30-10:30, 12:30-18:30 and 21:30 hrs. Feature programes are also broadcast in these three languages. TRT TV2 News in English shortly after 22:00 hrs. TRT TV2 Monday at 19:40 CNN in English, TV INT News in English shortly after 23:00 hrs.
– TRT Radio3 on the FM band airs news in English, French and Germany at 09:00, 12:00, 14:00, 17:00, 19:00 and 22:00 hrs. daily.
For further information contact
– The Voice of Turkey
TRT (External Services) Turkiyenin Sesi Radyosu PO Box 333, Yenisehir – Ankara, Turkey Zip Code: 06443 Tel: (312) 490 98 17, 490 98 06, 05, 30 Fax: (312) 490 98 40, 45
Apart from TRT, many hotels and residents have a satellite TV receivers. You may watch CNN, BBC, NBC, MTV, MGM, RTL, EUROSPORT and many more. Cable TV’s are widely used in all big cities in Turkey as well.
(We’d like to remind that some Turkish letters contain some dots. During the encoding process, computers have some problems reading all these letters. Below, you’ll find similar letters of those in order to avoid leading any strange characters and symbols)
The detailed and exact conversation guide will be handed to our guest as soon as their arrival. Just have a glance for getting acquaintance for now
Everyday phrases and polite expressions
To the words “hos geldiniz” (welcome), you reply “hosbulduk”
Hello Merhaba
Goodbye Allahaismarladik (said by the person leaving. Gule gule (said by the person seeing his friend off)
Good morning Gunaydin
Good evening Iyi Aksamlar
Good night Iyi Geceler
How are you? Nasilsiniz?
I am well, thank you. Iyiyim, tesekkur ederim
Please Lutfen
Thank you Tesekkur ederim or mersi
Yes Evet
No Hayir
There is Var
I want Istiyorum
There is not Yok (used to express the availability or unavailability of something, respectively)
Numbers
1 Bir 11 Onbir 101 Yuzbir
2 Iki 25 Yirmibes 200 Ikiyuz
3 Uc 30 Otuz 300 Ucyuz
4 Dort 40 Kirk 1000 Bin
5 Bes 5O Elli 2000 Ikibin
6 Alti 60 Altmis
7 Yedi 70 Yetmis
8 Sekiz 80 Seksen
9 Dokuz 90 Doksan
10 On 100 Yuz
The days
Sunday Pazar
Monday Pazartesi
Tuesday Sali
Wednesday Çarsamba
Thursday Persembe
Friday Cuma
Saturday Cumartesi
The Time
When? Ne zaman?
Yesterday/today Dün, bugün
Tomorrow Yarin
Moming aftemoon Sabah, Ogleden sonra
Evening/night Aksam, gece
One hour Bir saat
What is the time? Saat kac?
At what time? Saat kacta?
While travelling
Airport Hava alani
A room Bir oda
Port Liman
Two people Iki kisi
A room with a bath Banyolu bir oda
Town centre Sehir merkezi
Where is it ? Nerede?
What is the price? Fiyati nedir?
Is it far? Uzak mi?
Hot water Sicak su
Tourism bureau Turizm burosu
A supplementary bed Ilave bir yatak
Repair garage Bir tamirci
good hotel Iyi bir otel
Breakfast Kahvalti
Restaurant Bir lokanta
Butter Tereyag
Attention Dikkat
Coffee Kahve
Tea Çay
Milk Sut
Petrol Benzin
Sugar Seker
Petrol station Benzin istasyonu
The bill Hesap
Oil Motor yagi
Change of oil Yag degistirme
Shopping Alisveris
Tire Lastik
How much is it? Bu ne kadar?
Brakes Frenler
It is very expensive Çok pahali
Spark plugs Bujiler
It does not work. Calismiyor
I do not like it. Begenmedim
In the restaurant
Bread Ekmek
Meat Et
Water Su
Mutton Koyun eti
Mineral water Maden suyu
Lamb Kuzu eti
Fruit juice Meyva Suyu
Beef Sigir eti
Wine Sarap
Veal Dana eti
Beer Bira
Chicken Pilic, Tavuk
Ice Buz
Fish Balik
Several Turkish dishes
Hors-d’oeuvre “mezeler”
Amavut cigeri Spicy fried liver with onions
Cerkez tavugu Cold chicken in ‘walnut puree with garlic
Cig Kofte Spicy raw meatballs (beware it’s really hot !)
Midye dolmasi Stuffed mussels (recommended with lemon juice)
Yaprak dolmasi Stuffed ape leaves (recommended with lemon juice with olive oil)
Corbalar Soups
Yayla Çorbasi Yogurt soup
Dugun Çorbasi Meat soup with egg
Iskembe Çorbasi Tripe soup (Recommenden with garlic and vinegar/lemon
Izgaralar Grills
Doner Kebap Lamb grilled on a
Pirzola Lamb chops
Bonfile Steak filet
Sis Kebap Grilled lamb on skewers (Shish Kebap)
Pilavlar Pilafs
Sade pilav Plain rice pilaf
Sis köfte Grilled meatballs (Shish kofte)
Iç pilav Rice with nuts, currants, and onions
Bulgur pilavi Cracked wheat pilaf
Cold vegetables in olive oil “Zeytinyaglilar”
Imam bayildi Split aubergine with tomatoes and onions
Kabak kizartmasi Fried baby marrow slices served with yogurt
Patlican kizartmasi Fried aubergine slices served with yogurt
Zeytinyagli fasulye Green beans in tomato sauce
Savoury pastries “Börekler”
Sigara böregi Fried filo pastry filled with cheese (cigar shape)
Su böregi Layers of filo pastry baked with cheese or meat filling
Talas böregi Puff pastry filled with meat
Salads “Salatalar”
Cacik Chopped cucumber in garlic flavoured yogurt
Coban salatasi Mixed tomato, pepper, cucumber, and onion salad
Patlican salatasi Pureed aubergine salad
Piyaz Haricot bean salad
Desserts “Tatlilar”
Baklava Flaky pastry stuffed with nuts in syrup
Tel Kadayif Shredded wheat stuffed with nuts in syrup
Sütlaç Creamy cold rice pudding
Komposto Cold stewed fruit
Dondurrna Ice cream
Fruits “Meyvalar”
Grapes Üzüm
Honey dew melon Kavun
Peaches Seftali
Watermelon Karpuz
Plums Erik
Apple Elma
Apricots Kayisi
Pear Armut
Cherries Kiraz
Banana Muz
Figs Incir
Well, if you still haven’t seen our irresistible cuisine page we can say that you missed a lot. Please click here to jump our Turkish Cuisine page now.
