Lizzie, when were you there? I did use an ATM by the visa desk.

Lizzie, this is from another forum but please check out post #5. I was beginning to think I'm the only one who saw an ATM at the visa desk, thankfully I'm not.

http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntre...readID=1907099

May 2009 - Easyjet, originating LGW, landing in Sabiha Gökçen. I think the point we can all take from this thread is just have some cash on you in case there isn't an ATM (seems unlikely) or the ATM isn't working (probably more likely). That is all ;-)

PM - I'm quite sure my experience was in the minoriy and most travelers on this board will probably be landing in different terminals and most likely different airports. It's just a cautionary tale!

I'm sorry lizzie, I thought you were speaking of Ataturk.

And I was beginning to question my sanity, in wondering if it was a phantom ATM visible only to me. That would be nice, wouldn't it?

It's a good cautionary tale, thanks for helping clear this up.

We just made sure we had USD cash to pay for our visas. Carrying $40 ($20 for each of us) wasn't a big deal and easier than looking for an ATM.

For the orginal poster, we just returned from a trip. All ATMs dispense lira, some also offer Euros but we only took Lira out. I'm not sure how the bank would charge for Euros so it seemed safest. When you pay your hotel bills, the hotel will accept Euros, Lira or USD. Since many of them offer a big discount for cash, we paid our first hotels in USD as we brought cash with us. The exchange rates the hotels charged were based on current rates that were in line with the rates I saw on the internet the same day. I imagine not all hotels are as honest but it seemed to work for us. You will need Lira for museums, etc. Many shops also took Euros but it seems easier to deal in Lira and not worry about the conversion.