TURKEY
Each year my wife and I take at least one major trip usually out
of the United States. As a retired person I have both the time
and the interest in the trip planning process. In my working
years my profession required extensive world travel so we have
been fortunate to have seen a great deal of South America, some
of Asia and Africa and most of Europe…business and pleasure.
Several years ago we discussed Turkey as a destination. I had
been to Istanbul in the 60’s for several days. I had very
positive memories including a wonderful day in the world’s
largest covered bazaar.
The history of the world has passed through Turkey with
civilization dating back to 7500 BC. Both the early history of
Christianity and the early history of Islam are part of the
glorious history of this land. As a youngster studying geography
this area of the world was called “Asia-Minor”. Turkey is a
large country extending from east to west about one thousand
miles. Through time
many borders have changed and new countries created. Today
Greece and Bulgaria on the West and Syria, Iraq Iran, Armenia,
and Georgia on the East now border Turkey. Add to the list of
borders the Black Sea, the Aegean Sea and the Mediterranean
Geographically Turkey is in two continents (often mentioned in
tour books) but in fact only 3% of Turkey is in Europe and the
remaining 97% in Asia. The section of Istanbul that most
tourists stay containing the old city and the covered market is
on the European side of the Bosphorus. The Bosphorus is a narrow
water passage connecting the Black sea and the Sea of Marmara; a
steady stream of tankers pass through with oil from Russia. When
I took the ferry across from the European side (30 minute trip)
in the 60’s it was the first time I could say I was in Asia. Of
course there is no difference from the European side and the
Asian side. Most of Turkey has a European culture. Turkey is
primarily a Muslim country which to this traveler made no
difference.
TO GO OR NOT TO GO
After 9/11 international travel significantly decreased. Not
just from the United States but around the world. The invasion
of Iraq further decreased tourist travel to Turkey with an
eastern border with Iraq. The bombing of a Synagogue in Istanbul
was a further concern for those thinking about a trip to Turkey.
It would seem that the Turkish police have captured and
imprisoned those responsible for that attack. Added to this was
the rejection by the Turkish government of the United States
request to place troops in Turkey for the war against Iraq.
Turkey also rejected sending troops to participate in the war.
It was not unreasonable to think that there might be anti-American
sentiment in Turkey.
We postponed our plan to visit Turkey in 2003. We did go to
Russia on a boat trip from Moscow to St. Petersburg and then a
few extra days in the wonderful city of St Petersburg. And then
five days in Vienna with a side trip to Budapest. A great trip
but that is another story!
Now that we have spent 15 days in Turkey we can say there
continues be a general objection to the war in Iraq but that
does not translate to any anti American or British etc.
sentiment against tourists. Of course our interface was with
people who make their living from the tourist business. As just
about anywhere talking politics is generally not the way to go!
After the Russian trip in August 2003 we decided we would go to
Turkey in June 2004.
PLANNING THE TRIP
I first purchased the travel books that have seemed most useful
to me. Different people have different preferences. I like
Frommers (also Foders depending on which is the latest in print)
and Lonely Planet. While we are certainly not back packers or
limited budget travelers Lonely Planet has very useful
information and I do not mind saving some money along the way.
For the same reason I like Rick Steves’ books and for
prioritizing sight seeing. He tours in four hours what it takes
us two days and we do not stay at the budget accommodations he
usually recommends. He did not have a book for Turkey. We also
purchased the Istanbul Eyewitness Travel Guide, which I find
outstanding for sightseeing information in cities. We purchased
two other books printed in England, which we did not find useful
and shall be nameless. A twenty-dollar book purchase is
insignificant if you can find even a little information that
will assist your travel planning for a trip costing thousands.
INDPENDENT OR GROUP
We generally travel independently. That is, we do not book a
group tour. We have traveled with another couple and that has
worked well. This is very much a matter of preference and also a
matter of time that you are willing to spend planning your trip.
For Turkey we had the very best of all worlds and we found it at
a real “value” price.
To start we wrote, called or emailed every advertiser offering
Turkey Travel in the International Travel News. These were based
in the United States. Using the WEB we also contacted travel
agents in Turkey. The result was 8 organizations in the United
States and 8 organizations in Turkey. We collected their
brochures, printed out their web sites and emails. We concluded:
We did not want the bus tours (or van) that extensively covered
Turkey rarely staying two nights at a hotel and more often one
night. The advantage is to go everywhere and the cost (excluding
tips) was generally all-inclusive. The disadvantage to us was
the long drives (Turkey is a big country) and the in and out of
hotels and lugging luggage! The prices varied significantly on
these tours by as much a 100 percent. The obvious reason was the
quality of hotels, the number of persons included and of course
the profit expected .We did not spend significant amount of
times evaluating these packages since we did not have an
interest. A few suggested that they could offer. “Customize
travel” but it was mostly “ what do you want?” .Two firms
offered us specific suggestions and seemed priced properly.
These proposals included a private car or van with driver and a
tour guide and were priced no higher then nearly all the “group”
fixed itinerary tours. And in some cases were significantly
lower in price.
THE BEST TRAVEL AGENT EVER
After a number of emails we came down to one Travel Company and
one travel person. His name is Mr. Deniz Osternua. His firm (he
is not owner I believe) is a medium size travel company with a
main office in Ankara and an office in Istanbul is Parasol
Travel. They also use the name
www.enjoyturkey.com
when booking travel for individuals. A great part of their
business is providing group or individuals who have booked
through a United States or other country travel agent. They are
strong in English so English speaking countries represents a big
part of their client base. His email address is deniz@istanbulparasol.com.
His telephone in Istanbul is 90 212 224 93 63. Their web site is
www.istanbulparasol.com. He claims that booking directly is a
significant saving for independent travel. I believe that.
Lets start with the price since that is usually of most interest.
It was $1974 per person for an escorted tour for 14 nights. We
had our own driver and our own guide. We stayed at terrific
hotels and the price included breakfast and lunches and all fees
for touring etc. We requested that dinners not be included. Some
nights we splurged at top restaurants ($40) and some nights at
the Lonely Plant suggestions ($15). We traveled to three areas,
Capadocia, (4 nights) Kusadasi (5 nights) and Istanbul (5 nights).
The domestic airfare and all transfers were included in the
price. The price could be lower if we traveled with another
couple since the vehicle; driver and guide cost is a constant.
We selected better accommodations; they could be less expensive.
In Istanbul we could have had group tours and that would have
also reduced the cost.
Deniz Osternua met us when we arrived in Istanbul and reviewed
our itinerary before we flew to Kayseri. He is a charming man
and called us several times as we traveled around Turkey. He
planned the entire trip and during the months leading up to our
actual travel always rapidly responded to my stream of questions
via email.
Now to the details of our trip.
GETTING THERE
Most people would not follow the course that we did…travel by
air Business Class. The reason is simple; the fares are
outrageous. . Business class can be as high as $6000. The flight
to Turkey from the east coast is 10 hours one way and 11 on the
return. For older people, not as thin as we should be, all that
extra space is wonderful. One way to get the price down (actually
in half) is using an American Express Platinum card. They have a
two for one deal on a number of airlines.
That offer would have got us a business class ticket for about
$3000 per person from Dulles which is the nearest International
airport to our home in Virginia. When we called Turkish airline
their business class price was $3651 from Chicago or New York. I
was told that a travel agent in New York specializing in Turkish
travel could get better price. The name is ATC. Anadola Travel
They quoted $3,100. Their number is 1.800.Anodolu. If you are
traveling coach or business class I suggest you check them. They
also endorsed the agent I was using in Turkey. That was
reassuring. But the best price I got was on a Delta direct
flight from JFK in New York to Istanbul for $2400. Expensive of
course but a long way down from $6000. The bottom line is to
keep checking since there are many different deals.
We found the Delta business class section absolutely terrific.
One airline we have flown had an equal Business class which is
Austrian Airlines. Delta flew a 767 with a coach section of only
two seats on the side isles and looked comfortable.
CAPPADOCIA
We arrived in Istanbul following the 9 plus hour flight from New
York. We had driven to Washington and then flown to JFK which
was $228 per person r/t extra. We had chosen not to spend the
first night in Istanbul but rather to continue on to Cappadocia.
A visa is required to enter Turkey but you can purchase for $20
at the airport. It was very fast and very simple. Continuing
travel the same day eliminated one additional hotel check in and
check out. Deniz Osternua and a driver met us at the airport .
They took us for a birds eye tour of Istanbul and we went to the
old city and saw the hotel we would be using the following week.
After lunch we returned to the airport and checked in at the
domestic terminal for a flight to Kayseri…the airport serving
the Cappadocia area. The flight was one hour. Domestic airfare
had been included in our tour price.
As the tourist brochures say… Cappadocia is the setting for some
of natures most bizarre wonders. It is filled with “fairy
chimneys” that were the result of lava from volcanoes estimated
70 million years ago and then by rain and waters of lakes and
rivers. When traveling to Turkey this sight should not be missed.
Additionally there are underground cities of incredible size
built by Christians prior to 500 AD. There are also fortresses
and apartment homes built in lava mountains.
We were met at the airport by the driver and a guide that had
come from the Ankara office of Parasol Travel..
We stayed at a delightful small hotel in the town of Uchisar
called Ahbap Kongi…Phone- 90-384-219-30-2-; Fax:
90-384-219-3021. It on the side of hill with a fantastic view of
the largest Volcanic rock castle/ fortress in Cappadocia that
had people living in cave apartments as recently as fifty years
ago. The sights of the valley from this location are breath
taking . The occupancy is only about 20 and is owned and
operated by a local Turkish man and his French wife. They serve
three meals a day on the terrace with its outstanding view….you
can also see part of the town and town activity from this
location.
It being late and we being tired the first night we had dinner
in the dinning room. We o had dinner one more night there. They
serve beer and wine which was nice at the end of a days tour
sitting on the terrace. Our breakfast were very pleasant sitting
outdoors. It was not an American breakfast but we did not come
to Turkey for American food..
The room was reasonably large and had a small terrace with the
fantastic sights. The bathroom had a large shower. Everything
was very clean and all the people who served us were very
pleasant and responsive. Our hotel cost was part of our package
but from early correspondence we learned that the nightly rate
was $85 paid by tour company. We asked the owner the rate and he
quoted $90 to $125 depending on the season..
If we had only spent one full day in the Cappadocia area and
stayed at this hotel and exclusively walked around the lava/fortress/apartments
, seen the valley views and walked around the small village of
Uchisar it would have been worthwhile traveling there.
But of course we saw much more and stayed longer. We spent four
nights which resulted in three days of sightseeing. I would
recommend three nights and two full days of sightseeing. My wife
on the other hand preferred the leisurely pace.
We toured the Goreme open air museum with underground early
Christian churches. Pasabagi and Zelve with panoramic views and
rock dwelling houses. We also visited Avanos and its pottery
workshops. I could have missed that but like most places that
have a shopping component my wife does not share my opinion.
Our lunches were part of the tour. We stopped at very nice
places and were joined by the tour guide and driver. We had two
dinners at the hotel and two dinners in the town of Goreme.
Although too small to call a city Goreme is significantly larger
then Uchisar. It is a the bus center for the area and is filled
with pack packers and accommodation of all price ranges and
tastes.. The main street has numerous restaurants to select from
with a spread of prices. We selected what we considered the high
end and the cost never exceeded $40 for two with wine and one
was closer to $30. One place was the Sedef Restaurant and our
bill was $33. The second place was the Alaturca also on the main
street.
We calibrated the cost of a restaurant on the entire trip by
looking at posted menus and checking the rice pudding price. If
it was 2 million lire or less it was a very inexpensive
restaurant. If it was 6 million it was expensive. But expensive
is not that expensive. A million lire is about 66 cents. They
say in a year they will be dropping all the “0’s” from the money
which now make it rather confusing and easy to over pay.
On our fifth day in Turkey we left early in the morning for the
airport ( a local driver was sent as our guide and driver went
back the night before to Ankara.) and then took the flight back
to Istanbul. In Istanbul we had lunch at the airport and then
got a flight to Izmir and the coast area. No flights were direct
to Izmir. While the travel took most of the day it was still a
lot easier then had we taken a very long bus trip. All three
airports are reasonably new and pleasant.
KUSADASI
We arrived in Izmir at about 3 in the afternoon. Our drivers was
a bit late and was a little confused on our next day schedule.
When we questioned what he proposed he called the office and it
was corrected. He was the only person we encountered on the
entire trip that was not pleasant to us. Parasol Travel uses an
affiliated firm Bravo Travel in this area. Izmir is a large
commercial city on the water. We spent no time in Izmir
It is a one hour drive from the airport to Kusadasi. Kusadasi is
very much a seaside resort on the Aegean Sea. Nearly every day
there are cruise ships with tourist coming ashore to visit the
ruins at Ephesus less then an hour away. It is filled with
tourist “trap” shops and a big variety of accommodations and
restaurants,.
We stayed for five nights at the Kismet Hotel….a terrific hotel
jotting out right on the water. It was recommended as a top
hotel in every guide book we read and with one exception lived
up to the reviews. Although included on our total tour fee it is
my understanding that double rooms start at $100 per night. We
had a large room over looking the harbor area. Breakfast was
included and a very generous buffet was set in a downstairs room
overlooking the sea. Nice place to have your morning coffee. I
would recommend that anyone going to Kusadasi stay at the Kismet.
The exception was the dining room for dinner. It is a beautiful
location and mostly outdoors overlooking the sea. On our first
night we chose to have dinner there. It featured a buffet that
looked unappetizing to us. We ordered ala carte and we both had
fish. It was not a bad meal but if was far from special and the
price was $50 for two including the normal 10% tip. That was a
high price for Kusadasi.
On Tipping
Ten percent seemed the normal amount for meals. Taxi drivers did
not expect a tip. The normal range of tips for a driver is per
day $5 to $10. For a guide the normal range is $10 to $15 per
day. Having a driver and guide exclusively and being extremely
satisfied, we exceeded that amount.
Touring the ruins
Any Turkish guide book will give you the details on the worlds
most interesting ancient ruins. On the first day we toured three
ruins that were very close to the city….Prienne, Miletos and the
oracle Didyma, They were interesting but only an introduction to
the Pergamon and Ephesus tour.
Our guide was more then a guide …he was a very real
anthropologist. He had spent a great deal of time “digging” and
a number of his finds were in the local museums. He had been
teaching at a University that was destroyed by the recent
earthquake and guiding was his current profession. A very
interesting and knowledgeable man.
On the first day of the tour he also recognized “an attitude”
with the driver and requested a change for the remaining days of
touring. That was accomplished.
Our schedule included a full day of touring Pergamon. It is a
bit of a drive but worth it. Our final day of touring ruins was
Ephesus; one of the oldest and best restored in the Meditation.
Our tour guide seemed to know absolutely everything and made the
tour very interesting. The good news is that you are dropped off
at the top and it is all down hill as you walk through. It was
busy but I can imagine that it can get very crowed in the peak
summer months. Worth going early.
Our schedule had one free day while we were in Kusadai. The
advantage of your own guide and driver is control over the pace
of travel so we were not exhausted. I recall chatting with a not
particularly young American couple at breakfast at the Kismet
who had just finished a group tour and were complaining that
their traveling companions all seemed to be aggressive hikers.
Since we were on the water, I thought a day in a boat might be
pleasant. An activity that could be interesting and restful. Our
“professor” guide was more guide then tour director. He brought
me into a store front travel agent. That was the right answer
but the person there seemed to be busy or too fast for me and I
never got the information I needed. I then called Bravo Travel.
After some hassle they said they could arrange a boat tour for
the two of us for a hundred dollars including pickup and return
from the hotel. It also included lunch. . The boat was one of
many “swim” boats. It went down the coast a bit and the stopped
off shore and most of the people went swimming. We chatted with
a young Scottish couple who said they had paid $40 dollars. A
taxi to the hotel would cost no more then $5. So I paid 100
dollars for a 50 dollar day.. We all have been taken” worse” in
our travels.
My recommendation is to arrange for a one day Gullet boat trip.
That should be done in advance or with a local retail travel
company. Or if you had another day.( the one I suggested could
be saved in Cappadocia)….you could take a overnight Gullet trip
toward Bodrum on the Mediterranean.
EATING IN KUSADASI
Lots of choices and most easy to find. Most are not very
expensive unless you order fish Situated on the sea… fish is a
likely choice. It is sold often by the pound. While a lamb dish
might be under $15 a fish meal could be over $30 per person.
At the bottom of the drive of the Kismet Hotel is a large
outdoor restraint that is on the water. It is extremely
attractive but also expensive and we found the service lacking.
It has a nice view. We paid over $60.High for Turkey.
You can walk along the harbor and there are any number of
restaurants on both sides of the street. Overlooking the Aegean
Sea is Café BS 1003 on Ataturk Blvd, where we had dinner and
another evening just enjoyed cocktails. A soup to nuts dinner
with deluxe appetizers (several) and fish main course and drinks
(several) was $60. It is a short walk along the harbor from the
Kismet Hotel. In the old town which is an easy walk (and most
streets closed to vehicles) from the waterfront there are many
places to eat. We enjoyed Oz Urfa Rebapcisa at Cephane Sok 9.
Dinner for two was $27 with drinks. A bit further down the
street is the Pasa at Cephane Sokak 21. We had a very nice meal
there with drinks for $29 for two, When you locate these
restaurants you are in the heart of the old town and the choices
are unlimited,
After four full days in Kusadasi…on the morning of the fifth we
drove to the Izmir airport for our flight to Istanbul. Lo and
behold…the first driver. We did not tip him!
ISTANBUL
At the risk of sounding like a tourist brochure I can say that
Instanbul offers as much to see as London, Paris and Rome. And
it is much less expensive for hotels and food…good hotels and
good food. In four full days we saw all the sites and spent a
full day at the covered bazaar. The details of the sites are in
any tour book. We also took a public cruise toward the Black sea
on the Bosporus. We had a wonderful young lady as our guide. A
Cigdem Calap, email: ciddemcalap@superonline.com. She spoke
excellent English as did all our guides. We considered the four
full days the correct amount of time to be in Istanbul (five
nights)
We stayed at the Armada Hotel. It is a new hotel recently built
but does gives the feel of an older building blending in well
with the Sultanahmet section of the city. This old city section
contains most of the sights a visitor would want to see and
contains the bazaars and shopping areas. Our room was very
modern and large. The price was $90 as shown in our original
tour quote. I considered that a real bargain. The restaurant for
the breakfast buffet (included) was on the roof. In the morning
it seemed a bit too sunny. In the evening it had wonderful views
of the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia and Topkapi Palace. They are
all lit and the sight is spectacular. The hotel is very close to
the old city wall and the Bosphorus.. Restaurants across the
street had good views of the water.
We had dinners at two different locations. A short taxi drive
away ($3) is a street named Caddesi. It is a main street
starting in the area of the Blue Mosque and other sites going up
hill and having a Tram on it. A good street and area to walk
around in the early evening. There is also a tourist information
office at the bottom. The area is filled with restaurants and
most have someone in the front soliciting customers. Not in a
manner that would make you feel uncomfortable. Most are amusing..
One we was Sultanahament Kofteccsi at number 12 Caddeesi. Listed
in Lonely Planet it was far too modest, They had a very limited
menu and served very rapidly They had good rice pudding!. The
price for two was only $15 but not a spot we would recommend.
With-in walking distance of the Armada Hotel were a number of
restaurants. One, just a block away, with tables overlooking the
water seemed to be part of a municipal complex named Eminonu
Belediye. No fish on the menu but we had a good meal with rapid
service …again for only $15 for two. A block beyond was a very
local restaurant that also had outdoor seating. We had another
very nice meal and excellent service for about $20, On our final
night at another restaurant within walking distance of the
Armada Hotel was the Balikci Sabahattin . Highly recommended by
Frommers it was the finest meal we had in Turkey. There was no
menu and the waiter just kept bringing courses. Absolutely
wonderful. eating outdoors. . The check with several drinks was
less then $60.
FINAL IMPRESSION
We like Turkey a lot. Generally we do not chose to go back to
places we have visited ((exception is London and New York). We
would return to Turkey and might do that in two years.