Mtselinda

My wife and I are planning an 8 day Globus tour of Western Turkey? Has anyone had any experience with this tour? Also, what to pack? Because it will be so hot, are shorts OK for men? In some areas of the world you look silly in them. Similarly, slacks for women? Should I take a jacket and tie? Thanks for any advice and sharing. MS

Angela

Which month are you going - this will help in giving you a recommendation on what to pack. As a guide June, July and Aug shorts are perfectly acceptable, take one pair of pants to visit a mosque and for some of the nicer restaurants. Late Aug, early Sept the evenings start to get a little cool, esp near the sea and you will need pants and a very light long sleeve shirt. You can dress as you normally would at home, however, if you are planning many nights out, clubs, restaurants, etc. you will want some dressier clothes - Turks are like Europeans, they dress up more then North Amercians do. (P.S. I've never been on this Tour - sorry). Please feel free to e-mail me or post more quesitons - mroe detail - your age, time of trip, budget - will help.

Arizona

We traveled with Globus in Turkey two years ago. We just returned from another part of that interesting country with another tour company. Shorts are all right, except if you wish to enter a mosque (they provide men with a sarong-like garment that wraps around their bare legs). A lightweight sport coat can do double duty for any dress-up occasion or to wear in place of a sweater if the weather turns chilly. You did not say when you were going. E-mail us with anything specific you wonder about. <BR>We only know one thing: don't miss Turkey.

George Holt

Generally speaking these coach tours are pretty informal. Comfort is the order of the day on the coach and when scrambling over ruins and for many that means shorts. I carry a fairly plain pair of tracksuit/jogging bottoms which have served me well in mosques and Greek and Spanish churches. They roll up small on the coach and slip on and off easily. Women need to dress modestly for mosques and some sort of sarong will serve to cover shorts and bare legs and a scarf will cover bare shoulders. <BR> <BR>In the evening I, and I've found most other tourers, like to change. Nothing dressy, just a pair of slacks and a shirt is usually plenty for communal dinner at the hotel. As the week goes on you'll start to look a little 'lived in' but don't worry so will everyone else.

Nurdogan

Dear Friend, <BR>Istanbul is too hot at the moment.It is around 30-35 <BR>C. You must bring summer clothes. <BR>If you need any info about Istanbul,write me. <BR>Best wishes from Istanbul <BR>Nurdogan <BR>[email protected]

kim

I haven't taken Globus but we took Cosmo (a sister version) to Turkey. It was the worst tour we ever had. The tour guide and bus driver care more about their commission than the travelers. We saw more expensive shops than Turkey itself, i.e., 5-20 minutes at a famous site but 6 hours on that damn carpet store. I am still angry about it and the Cosmo tour defended its staff, of course. Don't take Cosmo or Globus to Turkey.

Mtselinda

We just got back from our Globus tour; it was excellent. Tour guide was very knowledgeable and accomodating; driver was competent and safe. Spent much time on the ruins; some complained too much because we got back to our excellent, amenity-loaded hotels too late to fully use their facilities. The only complaint was a minor one---too many of the dinners were buffet and thus had the inherent problem of mediocre buffet food. We were taken to no particular shops. The time spent in the carpet factory was well worth it, because of what we learned about carpets. We spent no more than two hours there, and only because a number of our tour members wanted to buy carpets. My experience was exactly opposite yours. Perhaps it's the difference between Cosmos and Globus.