Turkey

[kicksumass]

I'm taking a family vacation to Turkey in mid oct. Total of 11 full days in turkey. Going to istanbul, Selcuk (and surrounding areas like Pammakule, Aphrodisias), Fethiye and Goreme.

Few questions..
1. Which hotel to stay in Istanbul, selcuk, fethiye and Goreme? 4 adults. mid range..i guess something like a holiday inn price.

2. We'll be renting a car in Selcuk. Plan is to spend first day in Selcuk, second day in Pamukkale (sleep in pamukkale), Aphrodisias the third and drive to Fethiye from there the same evening. Do you recommend just doing a day trip from selcuk to cover Pamukkale and Aphrodisias?

3. How many days do we need in Goreme?

Thanks.

 

[Bernard]

In Istanbul, I highly recommend staying close to the Blue Mosque and the Haggia Sophia. Lots of stuff within walking distance. I don't remember the name of the place I stayed, but it was small and basic and locally owned. There are lots of small independent hotels in the area.

ABOSLUTELY MUST DO in Istanbul --- Have dinner at the Sarnic Restaurant. It's located on a back street in the neighborhood mentioned above. It located in a huge, 3,000(?) year old, underground room that was once part of Instabul's underground cistern water storage system. It's amazing what you'll build when you're paranoid about siege warfare. Hard to find, but WELL worth it. Have your hotel call for a reservation. Splurge here if you have to.

Outside Istanbul, you MUST find your way to Termessos. You'll see lots of ancient ruins in Turkey, but these are off the beaten path and laying around in a virgin state of disrepair. You're there off season, which is good. Hit Termessos on a weekday if you can. When I was there, my fellow traveler and I had the place to ourselves all day long. It was a overcast misty day and I felt like Indiana Jones discovering a lost city for the first time. Make sure you don't leave without seeing the amphitheater. It may be the single most amazing site in all of Turkey.

I traveled the back roads of Turkey for a couple weeks by car. I didn't have any problem finding reasonably priced rooms each night. No reservations were needed.

Have fun. Turkey is an amazing place.

Bernard

 

[ghost]

In reply to:

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[Scipio Tex]

1. You must stay in Sultanahmet. There are a billion options literally steps from the Blue Mosque and Aya Sofia.

2. Why aren't you going to Ephesus?

3. 2-3 days. I loved it. Stay in a cave hotel.

 

[kicksumass]

Scipio - I'll be going to Ephesus the first day in Selcuk. Isn't Ephesus very close to Selcuk?

thanks for the responses. Any other restaurant suggestions would be great.

 

[Scipio Tex]

yep. you'll be more impressed with it than the other sites.

I hired a university lecturer in Kusadasi to show me about inidividually - avoided the tourist tour, got great insights from a guy looking to pick up $25. You'll find the ancient signage particularly amusing.

 

[bluto]

buddy that lived there for a year should be chiming in shortly.

 

[3rd Degree]

My knowledge of Turkey is getting dated (1997), but I did want to chime in. Definitely try to stay in Sultanahmet, but the Besiktas area is good too. From there you can go to Ortakoy where the best open air market and nightlife is or you can go to Sultanahmet and see everything there. And the hotels in that area are generally very nice.

I have been to Goreme, but I stayed at a hotel called Hittite Hotel in Urgup, which is very close to Goreme. It was wonderful and relatively inexpensive. The owners daughter served breakfast every morning and we took turns practicing English and Turkish.

Iyi yolculuklar! (Have a good trip)

 

[Grasshopper]

We were in Istanbul in late June. Stayed at the Blue House - great location and was one of the best places we stayed in 3 weeks. Staff was nice (and we were carrying backpacks, which can often get us less than desireable looks). Price was under 200 per night and came with one of the best breakfasts we got over there.

Here was the view from our window in the early morning (you need to request this room, btw)...

and at night:

That's the blue mosque.

PM if you have any questions. We also hired a guide for one of the days who took us all through the historical parts of Istanbul. Well worth the splurge!

Hopper

 

[kicksumass]

those pics are great.

Thanks for all the info.

 

[kicksumass]

can I drive in Turkey with a US driver's license? Or do I need to get an international license?

 

[Bernard]

I drove all over the place in a rented Citroen from Hertz. I didn't have anything but my Texas license. Be careful though. ANY car accident will get you a mandatroy breath test from the police.

On a related note, you may or may not want to watch Midnight Express before you go and adjust your behavior as needed.

Bernard

 

[kicksumass]

great. Thanks. I did grow up in India so I'm used to the crazy drivers (I assume that's where you were going with the Midnight Express comment)

 

[Bernard]

Have you seen Midnight Express? By "related", I meant police related. Don't do anyhting to end up in a Turkish prison.

I didn't drive in Istanbul. In other parts of Turkey, driving was a breeze. No where near as crazy as Italy. No data on India.

Bernard

 

[nych 1]

Joey, have you ever been in a Turkish prison?

I used to live in Turkey in the mid-1980s (Ankara). Thankfully, my parents had diplomatic immunity (not that I got into any trouble, but it was nice insurance). Man, do I miss the Iskender kebab and Turkish pizza (Lahmacun).


Besides trying to smuggle out hash, other things not to do in Turkey: I wouldn't get into a political discussion about the foibles of Ataturk (a university professor in Ankara was given a 15 month suspended prison sentence in early 2008 for questioning his legacy); don't pack the System of a Down t-shirt either.

Istanbul (from my mid-80s recollection) is one of the great cities in the world. I hope to one day go back to Turkey and run in the Istanbul Eurasia Marathon.

 

[kicksumass]

oh oops. No, i haven't seen Midnight Express. Thanks for the heads up. I will try to stay out of trouble.