Turkey is a wonderful country to visit, full of culture and history. It's also a very cheap destination for British holidaymakers. After a recent trip to Turkey I wanted to share with you my top tips for maximising your holiday money:
Get the best Turkish lira exchange rate before you go
The best way to maximise your spending money is to make sure you are getting the best deal when you buy it in the first place! You can use our free comparison tool to check today's best Turkish lira exchange rates from the UK's biggest currency suppliers.
Turkey is cheap, but pay attention to prices
Nearly everything in the country is so cheap, you can easily throw a feast every single day. However, if you want to explore more local and cheaper food just remember these things:
- Street food snacks should not cost more than 20 lira (Turkish ice cream, etc.)
- Meal should not cost more than 50-60 lira (unless going to an exquisite place)
- Even souvenirs should cost you around 60 lira each (excluding jewelries or expensive items)
Take trams and metros in Istanbul
Public transport in the capital city of Turkey is very convenient, can even compare this to transportation in London. After all, Istanbul is quite a developed city.
You can use a metro pass, similarly to an Oyster card, to travel around. The deposit for it is 6 lira and the cost for each ride will be reduced down to 2.6 lira instead of 5 lira.
Another reason for taking a public transport is that yellow taxis will charge you probably twice as much if you're a tourist. Basically, ignore people who are asking if you need taxis after you've come out of the airport transfer bus.
Bartering is the key for souvenir shops
This doesn't apply to Grand Bazaar because they literally have signs saying ‘no bartering'. Other than that you can always use this trick.
Souvenirs should cost around 60 lira, is because items such as a lamp, blanket, etc. really doesn't cost much. I got a medium sized lamp for less than 60 lira after bartering a bit in Cappadocia, but it costs 120 lira in Grand Bazaar. Seriously, don't be shy because they are making way more profit than you think!