mike

my girlfriend and i are going on a trip to the Greek islands and Istambul, Turkey where we are planning on buying Turkish rug. Does anyone have info on where to buy, how to purchase a rug at a good price,ie. bargaining techniques etc. thanks.

Angela

I haven't bought one, but here's a bit of advise from my Turkish fiance. In Istanbul you can purchase a rug at the Grand Bazar. All of the merchants there speak many languages. You should plan to spend a number of hours drinking Elma Cey (Apple tea) and haggling over the price. Take a white piece of cloth with you, wet it and rub it over the colours, esp the blue to check the quality, the less colour that comes off onto the cloth the better the quality. Take your time, these merchants expect you to bargin. Also be prepared to walk away if you don't get the price, look or quality you want. It is an ability that will help you get a better price. When you get to the Grand Bazar spend some time walking all round casually looking at as many merchants as you can, before going into the shops. They will talk to you, English first then another language if you don't respond. Try not to start talking to one as soon as you get there or you may get sucked into his shop and find it difficult to remove yourself if you don't want to buy there. Lastly, even if they serve you tea and spend time bargining, don't feel obligated (the tea is cheap). Good luck!

Brian Underhill

Hello! As a Turkish-American, and frequent visitor to Turkey, I've seen the rug merchants become more and more aggressive with foreigners. It is very important to read the message above mine, as it does a good job explaining how to buy a rug. Use the 180-degree turn as a bargaining technique as often as you can. If you have a Turkish friend, take him/her with you, as Turks frequently get lower prices than do foreigners. The whole tea/conversation/guys sweating hard throwing down rugs thing is all intended to make you feel obligated--don't fall for it! Iyi yolculuklar!

NURDOGAN

If you need any info about Turkish and Oriental rugs
I might be able to give you some expl.
Contact me.
Best wishes from Istanbul
NURDOGAN
[email protected]

KP

We were in Turkey but didn't buy any carpet because we found that it is much cheaper to buy it home, at least 50-75% cheaper on both silk and wool hand-made carpet.