3 fantastic weeks in Turkey
We are a retired couple( I am 65 and Helle 62) exploring the world for 3 months of the year.
We had been to Turkey a couple of times back in the 1980’s when we were backpacking around the world. It has changed a bit since then!
Fast forward 35 years and we are back again for 3 weeks – this time spending a few days with our two sons( Lars and Mattias) plus Lar’s lovely Turkish wife, Derya , and her family.
Itinerary
We flew into the chaotic( in a good way) city of Istanbul. After a few days took a flight to Izmir, hired a car from the airport, drove the coast to Side then inland to the magical wonderland around Cappadocia( Goreme). We dropped the hire car at Neveshir Airport then flew to Turkey and onwards to Paris.
Why and when to go to Turkey
What is there not to love about Turkey – wonderful food, people, extraordinary history and ancient ruins, beautiful coastline and lovely clear warm waters.
We went in August. It is hot and busy but that didn’t worry us. If you are concerned about that then the shoulder season is a great option – spring or autumn.
Is it safe in Turkey
Absolutely. Like anywhere in the world you just need to be sensible. I always had our passports, credit and debit cards and cash in my money belt attached to me just about at all times! Never leave any valuables in the car or your backpack. Make sure your phone is zipped in your pocket at all times when not using it. Don’t fall for any overly friendly Turks who want to be your best friend – they are usually after something!
It is just the normal common sense stuff that you need to think about as there can be opportunists anywhere! Never walk any dark alleyways but that applies to any city in the world.
Where did we stay
We booked our accommodation either through http://www.airbnb.com or http://www.booking.com. We look at ratings and reviews so choose carefully. We like boutique accommodation( definitely no chain hotels) that offers charm with an outdoor space and often a pool to enjoy. Pick some along the route that have a washing machine available as well.
Is driving safe and easy
In a word – yes. We are from NZ so our cars have the steering wheel on the different side of the car and we drive on the other side of the road. However I found driving easy in Turkey.
With a car you have such great flexibility to get out and about and see so much more. The coastline of Turkey is spectacular – so take your time and enjoy the ride.
Google maps is your friend. We purchased an Airalo esim( electronic esim) for our 3 month trip – http://www.airalo.com. We paid $US100 for 90 days that gave us 50GBs of data. We mainly used it to navigate as when we got to our accommodation we always had free wifi.
What to pack
Not much! If you are going in summer( as we did) it is very hot. I never wore long pants or a jersey. Our general daily clothes were shorts, tee shirts or light tops and sandals. It is too hot for shoes! It did rain one day so always pack a good light rain jacket.
Togs are a must and to be honest you don’t need much else in summer.
Shoulder seasons can get chilly at night depending where you go so always prepare for that!
Highlights
Istanbul
There are numerous! Istanbul is a crazy busy city but vibrant with lots to see and do. You need to see the Sultanhamet area( Blue Mosque, Grand Bazaar, Spice market , Sofia Hagia) but be prepared for the crowds and queues. Visit Balat, the Greek influenced area with cool houses and little alleyways. We stayed near Taksim Square in Beyoglu which is a great area to explore and base yourself.
However the highlight was getting out of all the humdrum and taking the public ferry up the Bosphorus – you can jump on and off at will. We caught the bus to Ortakoy and then a ferry up to Emirgan Park passing Rumelli Fort on the way.
How to get around Istanbul
Public transport is fantastic in Istanbul. We used trains, buses and ferries for our 3 day stopover. Buy an “Istanbul Card” at the train station by the airport – it cost 130TL. Also upload some money onto it and off you go. You can keep adding more money to the card. You only need one as you can use it for multiple people. We spend around 1500TL(40 euros) on public transport for 3 days.
Then use google maps to get everywhere. To use the public transport mode put where you want to go, hit directions , then the icon that looks like a train and you have instant live ways to get to your destination. It is a game changer!
Ayvalik
Ayvalik is not a typical “foreigners” holiday destination. However it was an absolute highlight. The old town is idyllic – small cobblestone streets leading down to the town and port.
We used it as a base to take a boat out into the Aegean Sea, visit the ancient city of Permagon and Cunda Island. It is also a good base for a day trip to Gallipoli and Troy – I had already visited back in 1986 so we didn’t do that on this trip.
Datca Peninsula
Datca Peninsula is simply beautiful. We stayed in a small village and beachside resort – Ovabuku Beach. The great thing about hiring a car is that you can get a bit off the beaten track. Before hitting the Datca Peninsula we stayed in the lovely seaside village of Cesme , visited the ancient city of Ephesus enroute to Kusadasi. We enjoyed all of that but the real jewel for us was getting away from all the crowds – Ephesus was absolutely packed as were the beaches of Kusadasi. However Datca Peninsula was not.
Dalyan
An interesting riverside town where you can view ancient tombs in the cliffs, dating back from the 4th Century, from the town across the river.
Lots of tourists take a ferry tour down the river. We opted to take a rowboat across the river(100TL for two) and walk to the ancient city of Kaunos – around 30 minutes.
Butterfly Valley
This is not exactly off the beaten track however it is only reachable by boat ( or a very long walk) so it is peaceful and uncrowded. We stayed in the the very busy Oludeniz and took a small ferry to Butterfly Valley(500 TL each) from the main beach.
Kalkan
Most people gravitate to staying in Kas along the coast. Kalkan, however , is a much smaller seaside village and very charming. We used it as a base for a few days to explore the area including visiting Kas and the Ancient City of Xanthos.
On our way to Kalkan we had a stroll through Turkey’s deepest canyon – Saklikent Gorge. It is definitely worth an hour or two.
Kalkan has a small harbour with very quaint streets to wander plus a large number of restaurants and bars to choose from along the waterway.
Side
Our last seaside stop before we ventured inland to Cappadocia. Side is a very interesting place. The ancient city is interspersed with the new town which has lots of restaurants, bars and shops. Just wander about Side amongst the remnants from centuries ago. A lot of the old relics are covered in glass which you can observe from above. it is actually quite fascinating.
Just meander through the streets and there are ruins of the ancient past everywhere.
Cappadocia
No trip to Turkey is complete without spending a few days in this amazing wonderland of Cappadocia.It is where fairy tales were invented I am sure.
From Side it is a long drive – around 6 hours. The road is very hilly and windy all the way the Konya – then it opens up.
Cappadocia was formed over 60 million years ago – eruptions covered the plateau with ash and lava which solidified into soft rock . Over many millions of years the wind and rain has sculptured a variety of shapes as well cone hills known as fairy chimneys.
Hundreds of tourists a day get up before sunrise to go hot airballooning over Goreme.
Cappadocia is certainly a fabulous area to explore. There are a number of open air museums that you can pay to visit to see how people lived amongst the landscape many centuries ago. We visited the Zelve open air museum. However just driving around the area for free is amazing as fairy chimneys are everywhere.
There are also underground Christian villages which are fascinating. We visited Derinkuyu, about an hours drive from Goreme (980 TL for two). The Christians built them to hide from the enemy – It is believed construction started around 8th century BC. The city has 18 levels and goes to a depth of 85 metres! They could house hundreds of people and livestock and live beneath the ground for months. You can only visit down to the third level but it is quite a masterpiece and a sight to behold.
Turkish food
A lot of the places we stayed breakfast was included. It normally consisted of fresh bread, cheese, jams, eggs, fruit, coffee and tea. Some places had a bit more variety than that.
Our staple meal became kofta balls or chicken shish withs chips, rice and salad with Turkish bread. Both absolutely delicious and won’t break the bank. Beer is cheap in Turkey. Wine isn’t cheap, presumably being a muslim country.
If you want to go the full noise then go to a restaurant which showcases all the food options for you. Just point and choose from all the yummy options. If you are on a budget this option won’t be for you. We only did that a couple of times and with beer and wine it is expensive but a treat!
Costs
Turkey is certainly not the cheap holiday it use to be. The economy has been recently hit with high inflation so as a result local costs have escalated – As at March 2025 inflation was approx 40% which is down from the dizzy heights in 2024 when we visited.
However it is still a reasonably priced holiday.
Our overall cost for the trip for the two of us for 24 days was 197,000 Turkish Lire ( In May 2025 1 Turkish Lire equals 0.023 euros)or 4520 Euros( that is less than 200 euros per day)
This included accommodation, food, drink, car hire, petrol, internal flights, parking, travel insurance, mobile e sim, entry to all the sights we visited and sundry expenses along the way.
The only costs excluded are airfares to and from Istanbul.
Rent your house out
Our Turkish trip was part of a 3 1/2 month trip in Europe. We rented our house out in Auckland NZ through Furnished Rentals. This paid for half our holiday! They organised everything for us so you can rent out and be totally worry free – just enjoy the extra income that goes into your bank account!
Get a comprehensive Guide
If the above sounds great then for a small fee of US$2.95 I can share all the details of our entire trip. It will give you all the information you need to organise your own fantastic trip to Turkey.
Turkey is such a fantastic place to go for a holiday and relax or as we did go on a road trip to get a better feel for what Turkey has to offer. We certainly weren’t interested in lying on a beach all day and staying in the same place for more than a few days. We love to get out and explore. Turkey has so much more to offer than beaches and clear blue water.
FOR A ONE OFF PAYMENT OF ONLY US$2.95 GET ALL THE INFORMATION ON THIS FANTASTIC TRIP SO YOU CAN EASILY ORGANISE YOURSELF
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