About Turkey
Turkey is a country straddling Asia and Europe. It is fairly large, the 37th largest country in the world, to be exact. The climate of Turkey varies from place to place inside the country. The southern and western coastal areas have an easy going Mediterranean climate whereas the inner parts of the country have a cooler continental climate with big differences in the temperature during day and night. The black sea region on the other hand has a typical ocean-side climate with plenty of rainfall all year round. Best time to visit Turkey for a beach holiday can be from late spring to early autumn. If you are more interested in the history and nature of Turkey and your luggage is mostly hiking equipment, we suggest you to visit Turkey around the spring and autumn months. If you’d like to see magical places such as Cappadocia under snow, it is perfect time to visit around Christmas.
Regions of Turkey
- Marmara Region
- Aegean Region
- Mediterranean Region
- Central Anatolian Region
- East and Southeast Anatolia
- Black Sea Region
Destinations
Turkey offers some of the best destinations to visit in the world. Millions of people come to Turkey from abroad each year to see some of the most fascinating historical places, eat the most delicious Turkish meals and take the most instagrammable photos. Almost all of the visitors spend a couple of days in Istanbul and visit the remnants of the Byzantine and Ottoman Empires such as Hagia Sophia Museum, the Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace Museum, and the Grand Bazaar. the Bosphorus in Istanbul is also the only place where you can go on a cruise to watch the sunset between two continents, Europe and Asia. Cappadocia is another favorite with its mesmerizing fairy chimneys and the history of the people who chose these fairy chimneys as a home for themselves. Taking a hot air balloon tour in Cappadocia is one of the most unforgettable things a visitor to Turkey can do. Pamukkale is home to the a unique spectical, where cotton white pools of thermal waters can be enjoyed between the temperatures of 35 to 100 degrees Celsius. These pools were popular in earlier days too, people used to believe that the waters of the pools had a healing quality and came here to rest and treat illnesses as early as 2300 years ago. Ephesus is a place that every history lover should visit. One of the seven wonders of the world, the Temple of Artemis is in Ephesus along with other beautiful artistic pieces of architecture.
Food
One of the things that Turks and frequent visitors of Turkey are passionate about is Turkish food. Food in Turkey is rich, colourful and flavorful. Despite common beliefs held outside of Turkey, Turkish cuisine offers so much more than kebabs. It is not as meat loaded as one would think either. Some of the most common and most popular Turkish dishes are vegan and if you are vegetarian it is very easy to find something that would be within your dietary requirements. Turkey also has a variety of cheap and delicious street foods for a quick bite as well, such as simit (Turkish bagel), fish sandwiches and chicken rice meals.
Museums
Turkey’s rich and ancient history has resulted in many museums all around Turkey. The big cities such as Istanbul and Ankara are especially full of very important museums that get millions of visitors each year. Some of the most popular museums in Istanbul are Hagia Sophia Museum, Topkapi Palace Museum, Chora Chuch Museum and The Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts. These museums show a different aspect of Istanbul and its history and give visitors a glimpse of life throughout the past centuries. Anatolia is considered one of the earliest human settlements and this provides a huge, and ancient history to the lands of Turkey. To see the findings from different eras of humanity, visitors can pay a visit to Museum of Anatolian Civilizations in Ankara. Konya’s Mevlana Museum is home to the Whirling Dervishes and Mevlana Rumi. Mevlana was a very important and peaceful philosopher and his ideas about love and peace affected Anatolia and people in such a positive way that it is one of the most visited museums in Turkey.
Things to Do
Turkey is one big country that is home to many different, interesting places and there are plenty of things to do in Turkey. Istanbul is one of the most exciting cities in the world and some of the things that it offers are so unique that you wouldn’t be able to do them anywhere else. Such as going to a Turkish Bath and having an amazing, relaxing massage or taking a cruise boat through the Bosphorus to see the beautiful sunset overlooking the panorama of Istanbul with mesmerizing views of its both its historical and modern sides. You can visit the Hagia Sophia Museum that witnessed Istanbul’s past and see the enigmatic life of Ottoman Sultans and their harems in Topkapi Palace. Cappadocia is a place filled with activity and excitement. You can join a guided safari tour to discover different valleys of fairy chimneys or go an a hot air balloon trip to look over the amazing views. You can even get a private driver and see all there is the see at your own pace and choosing. Some hotels in Capadocia have terraces with views of the hot air balloons flying over valleys. In these hotels you can have breakfast with this beautiful view and take pictures to capture these moments. If you visit Ankara, you can have different types of mind blowing Anatolian food with different mezes. You can visit the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations to see the amazing collection of the history of humankind in Anatolia, and Gobeklitepe which is important for its 12,000 years of history and preservation.
Tours
Traveling can be a little hectic at times, especially in popular locations where everybody else wants to see and experience exactly the same things as you. In order to not waste time waiting in lines or not to fight the crowds, it is best to get skip the line tours in Turkey when you are visiting museums and historical places. These tours come with a guide that explains the most important and interesting parts of the place as well, making sure you are making the most of your visits. When you are visiting Cappadocia, it is recommended to join a safari tour since public transport is not exactly running punctually or frequently. If you are interested in the hot air balloon rides, the tours for these activities make sure to take you from your hotel and drop you off after while catering a breakfast. All that is left to you is to only enjoy your time.