1st trip to Turkey coming up .....
 

....and I am in desperate need of some advice. Our trip is for two weeks and are planning to spend time in Istanbul, Bursa, Pammukale, Marmaris, Fethiye and I am sure some places in between. <BR><BR>Can any of you saavy travellers recommend accomodations (nice, neat, w/a-c). Ideally We would like comforatable walking distance to main sites in Istanbul; and beach side where appropriate, (Fethiye,etc).<BR><BR>I have heard and read about the great bargains in Turkey. And I wanted to get some feedback from recent visitors. Are things like gold, leather, etc... really at bargain prices in Turkey?? Is it better to convert our money to Turkish Lira...<BR><BR>Since we want to cover alot of ground in our two weeks, would we benefit more from flying from place to place or would bus travel be sufficent? i know bus travel is time consuming, but perhaps the sites from the ride would be well worth it?<BR><BR>Any and all advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

http://www.msnbc.com/news/777552.asp<BR><BR>Interesting story about visiting Turkey.

If you know how to bargain you can get really good price for everything.<BR>If you go to Istanbul go to SULTANAHMET area where the historic place that you can walk and visit old building like St Sofia and Blue Mosque and Cister and Topkapi Palace are the important ones.<BR>You can take a bus to Bursa and stay there one night if you like SILK item you can find the cheapest price in SILK HAN. After pamukkale is not the place to take a bus because you have to take a bus for DENIZLI then take a taxi or DOLMUS (Small transportation bus in Turkey) to go to PAMUKKALE if you don't want to get this hassle you can rent a car from Istanbul drive to Bursa then to Pamukkale after Marmaris via AFRODISIAS (If you love history you have to visit this ruins and if this trip is your first visit Turkeiy you have to visit EPHESUS too which is different direction then Pamukkale to Marmaris so you may change you direction from Pamukkale to Selcuk or Kusadasi where you can visit EPHESUS and Virgin Mary's House and St Jean Church are the other place to visit in this area, then you can drive to Marmaris on the way you can visit Prienne, Miletus and Didyma, if you want to see one of the Seven Wanders of the world you have to go to Bodrum before Marmaris.<BR>There are many place to visit until marmaris so 2 weeks is not enough to see all ruins and historic places. BUT I HAVE TO RECOMMEND YOU IF YOU LOVE HISTORY YOU MUST RENT A CAR TO VISIT THESE PLACES AND RUINS<BR><BR>HAVE A NICE TRIP IN TURKEY<BR><BR><BR>ABC

just came back from two months in turkey. yes things are cheap but you need to bargain. gold is based on the world golf price but you are most like to get 18k instead of 14k. the bus trips are long. Bursa is manageable. we did that can take a fast ferry from istanbul (outside city limits) then take the bus. Pammukale and fethiye were a very long trip about 8-14 hours or so depending on your route. alos they travel at night can stop two or three times. take the plane but it will cost more. you can travel during the day but then you lose time. I stayed with my in laws in istanbul so can't recommend accomodations. don't convert your money the lira fluctates way to much. the rate really changes every day.9 out of ten times for the better for the tourist. can't remember the hotel we had in fethiye that was year one of our trip but depending when you go make sure you book ahead in the summer months. we booked a nice one this year over the internet and it counld be better the service, food and place was great. but it is just outside of alanya called the botanik

The first part of your trip could be done by bus from Istanbul to Bursa, then to Sel&ccedil;uk which can be a good base for daily visit to Efes and Pamukkale.<BR><BR>As time is counted I wouls skip Marmaris and Bodrum except if you are looking for exciting nightlife but prefer Didim and so on as ABC said.<BR><BR>Regarding the Med coast (from Fethiye to Antalya) it is better and more convenient (more independance) to rent a car. There are a lot of sites of interest to see in this area.<BR><BR>For an overview of this part of your trip, you can have a look at our website :<BR>http://davrazia.free.fr<BR><BR>Feel free to contact me for further information.<BR><BR>Isabelle<BR><BR>

Don't know what your budget is but here are three recommendations for the Sultanahmet area in Istanbul (so convenient for tourist sites and public transportation, but stay away from the tourist restaurants):<BR>Yesil Ev (didn't stay here but I wish I had!!!), about $160 double [email protected]<BR><BR>Side Hotel, about $60 double (a/c?)<BR>[email protected]<BR><BR>Hotel Turkuaz, about $80 double (a/c?) Ask for the Sultan's Room.<BR>[email protected]<BR><BR>In Pammukale, we loved the Hotel Kervansaray. It's very basic (clean, with small pool) but the welcome and the service from the family who runs it were incomparable. Home-cooked meals (including stuffed grape leaves from the three-story grapevine)on the rooftop terrace at sunset with a backdrop of the limestone terraces was a highlight of our whole trip. In fact, they may have the very best view of the terraces in all of Pammukale.<BR>[email protected]<BR><BR> Try to go swimming at the pool above Pammukale early in the morning or late at night, as it's full of bus tourists in the middle of the day. And don't miss the amphitheatre of Hierapolis just up the hill. It's fabulous!<BR><BR>About travelling around: we had 12 days by car and decided near the end to skip Fethiye because it was just too far. Here's how we could have done it better: after Istanbul, bus to Bursa, then fly to Izmir & rent a car for Ephesus, Pammukale, Marmaris, Fethiye,& back to Izmir, then fly back to Istanbul. On the other hand, then we would have missed Assos, which was another highlight for us: the hotel Yildiz Saray on the beach and a long, beautiful walk along the coast to the little village of Assos, then a steep climb up to the ruins: magnificent!<BR><BR>

Shopping. There are great potential bargains on gold, leather, and rugs in Turkey. I suggest you take USD there and use them when bargaining. Inflation is so bad there, the USD will give you a better bargaining position (we were there in May $1= 1.4 million lira. Now it is about $1=1.6 million). What we found is that they start the bargaining at about twice to three times the price you should pay. They give you 30% off pretty quickly. After that it's up to you to bargain them down.

We took our first trip to Turkey last year and spent about two weeks there. We would not have changed a thing in our itinerary:<BR>1) Selcuk as a base for Ephesus.<BR>2) Busride to Pammukale on the way to Cappadocia (Cappadocia is NOT TO BE MISSED!) Pammukale didn't seem to warrant more than a quick day trip en route to someplace else.<BR>3) Overnight bus to Istanbul. Stayed at Hotel Side - clean, convenient and inexpensive. Many side trips can be taken from here.<BR>The buses in Turkey are very clean, air conditioned and fairly new. Definitely the preferred mode of travel, even if you must overnight it. Trains do have sleeping cars but are extremely slow.<BR>Would be happy to forward more details if you are interested! Have a wonderful time -- it's a magical place!<BR>--Noelle

Just got back from almost 3 weeks in Turkey. Styed a few days in IST, rented a car and drove this route: Bursa, Bergama, Izmir, Ephesus, Pamukkale, Oludeniz (near Fethiye), along the coast with lots of stops to Antalya. Antalya to Konya and then to Cappadocia. Turned in the car in Kayseri and flew back to IST for our flight out. We loved driving for the independence it gave us. Roads were fine and well-marked. In IStanbul we stayed in the Hotel Side (good value) -- walkable to almost all the main sights. In Bursa we stayed in a hotel near the municipal parking garage (will post with the name if I recall it) -- close to the Bazaar and walkable to the Green Mosque and Tomb -- also thought it was a good value and had a superb breakfast. Stayed in the village of Sirince near Ephesus at Hotel Sirince Evi -- a bit pricey at $95 (for 3 people -- should be a bit cheaper for 2) but we got an entire village house to ourselves (nicely decorated) and excellent breakfasts. At Pamukkale we stayed in Hotel Yoruk -- modern and non-descript, but nice pool -- also thought it was a good value. In Oludeniz near Fetitye, we stayed in the Hotel Oludeniz -- about $20 a night, including a decent breakfast, nice pool, and walkable to the beach (better to stay in Oludeniz rather than Fethiye -- we wandered into Fethiye and did some shopping and sightseeing and enjoyed it, but glad we stayed in Oludeniz -- real beach-type community). In Antalya we stayed in Atelya Pension -- they have and old style section and a more modern section. Comfortable rooms -- ok price (think it was about 70 for a triple). Stayed in Gamirasus Cave Hotel in Cappadocia (village of Ayvali) -- a bit pricey at $95 for a triple, but nice rooms and bathrooms, great staff (very helpful), and includes a good breakfast and dinner each day. Hope this helps!