from tent to Turkey - the Eclipse experience

Super Cheap flights from UK and Europe ALERT

Fly with easyJet to Turin and watch the Olympic Games for as little as £19.99 (£14.99 fare plus taxes and charges). From March 1, easyJet will also fly to Lisbon, Portugal from £29.99 (£24.99 fare plus taxes and charges). All flights are one-way.

Jet 2 is offering hundreds of £21 fares (£6 fare plus taxes and charges) to the Alps, with seats available to Chambery and Geneva, from Leeds Bradford and Manchester. All fares are one-way.

The Excel Airways sale includes over one million discounted cheap seats, with some fares reduced by up to 50%. Routes include return flights from Manchester to Chambery in March from £53 (£23 fare plus taxes and charges) and Gatwick to Malaga in June from £68 (£38 fare plus taxes and charges).

Have you ever found it impossible to talk to a human being when telephoning your travel company? Do you get bored of listening to bad pop songs and endless computer instructions? Well, we do too. So the Cheapflights Team has compiled a Cheat Sheet to help you avoid the automated responses and speak to human being.

sourced : Cheapflights.co.uk

Posted by Spidey at 1:05 AM 0 comments

Atlasjet, a Turkish Airline

Atlasjet (or Atlas Jet) is a low-fare Turkish airline owned by two large Turkish tour operators, Etstur and Öger Tours.

Like Onur Air and Fly Air, it started as a charter airline flying tour participants from Europe to Turkey. Now it welcomes the general public to its flights, challenging the traditional national carrier, Turkish Airlines, and serves several internal Turkish routes.

Atlasjet operates daily flights from Istanbul to Adana, Ankara, Antalya, Bodrum, Dalaman, Erzincan, Izmir, Malatya, Siirt, Trabzon, and Van, as well as twice-weekly flights from Istanbul to northern (Turkish) Cyprus.

Fares on most of its flights are a
bout YTL89 (US$67), with some of its late-night fares as low as YTL49 (US$37)—almost as cheap as the bus! But check possibly expensive airport transfer costs as well.

The Atlasjet website has flight info, but no fares.

For fares and reservations you can telephone +90 (216) 444 0 387, and supposedly get that information in English. (Within Turkey, this is a toll-free/free-phone number: 444 0 387.)

The Atlasjet website appears to work in the Firefox and Internet Explorer browsers, but not in Safari.

Atlasjet tickets are sold by some Turkish travel agents (though some may be reluctant to sell them because the commission is so low they may lose money on the sale).

sourced : Turkey Travel Planner

Posted by Spidey at 9:35 PM 0 comments

Fly Air, an Airline in Turkey

Fly Air (codes: F2, FAO) is a Turkish airline flying several useful domestic routes in Turkey, and flies them at very low fares.

Turkish Airlines and Onur Air are better-known airlines serving Turkish domestic routes, but you might consider Fly Air also. They fly between Istanbul and Adana, Antalya, Bodrum, Izmir and Trabzon, with more cities to come.

Fares range from YTL46 (middle-of-the-night flights) to YTL89 (convenient daytime flights), plus airport taxes.

Be sure to look into airport transfer costs as well.

Interestingly, you can buy Fly Air tickets at the nearly 1000 Turkish post offices (PTT, Posta Telgraf) with internet connections!

The Fly Air website is useful for getting flight information (not all discount airline websites are useful, by the way).

To buy your tickets in advance if you're outside of Turkey, contact Tur-ISTA, right in Istanbul's Sultanahmet district; or Viking Turizm, just off Taksim Square).

Fly Hava Yollari
Florya Cad., Cevizli Sok. No. 7, Senlikköy, 34153 Florya Istanbul, Turkey
www.flyair.com.tr
rezervasyon@flyair.com.tr
Tel +90 (212) 424 3837
Fax +90 (212) 601 1671

sourced : Fly Air, an Airline in Turkey:

Posted by Spidey at 8:38 PM 0 comments

Antalya

mymerhaba : Antalya:
Antalya

Antalya, one of the most breath-taking places of Turkey, because of its spectacular location between the Taurus Mountains rising to 3086 meters just behind the coastline and the sparkling Mediterranean. It is accepted as a brilliant jewel surrounded by Termessus, Side, and Aspendos, the ancient cities of history and legend.

Small and large streams up-and-coming from the west of Taurus water the plains on their journey to the Mediterranean. This translucent running water, cascading into the sea at points along the coast, is another striking sight. The plant life is extremely wide varied from tropical plants to thriving oaks and pines as the center of a rich agricultural region and is also an important center for the distribution of citrus fruits, olives, sugar beet and tomatoes.

Four seasons only shown on calendars, for there is no winter there, in 1985 for the first time in 60 years snow fell; it was on the newspaper headlines then. The summers are hot and dry while the other seasons are warm and at times rainy, with an average temperature of 18 C. It is very exceptional for the temperature to drop below zero. The average humidity rate is 64%.

The region was inhabited 50 thousand years ago according to the results of archeological digs made in and around city. Antalya having a population of 500.000 doubles, even triples, it in summers as tourists both Turkey and abroad gather to get pleasure from its offerings. In September, the Turkish movie stars visit Antalya for the awards ceremony of Traditional Golden Orange Film Festival. The local people together with the tourists promenade in the evenings to meet some of these stars and watch the stunning sun set."

Posted by Spidey at 3:12 AM 0 comments

Solar Eclipse in March 2006 ; Why Turkey

mymerhaba : Solar Eclipse in March 2006
Solar Eclipse in March 2006

The total solar eclipse occurs on March 29, 2006.

This will be a spectacular eclipse, lasting over 4 minutes at maximum and visible over a path up to 190 km wide.

The shadow of the Moon will sweep a band starting Brazil, through Atlantic Ocean, Gold coast of Africa, Saharan desert, Mediterranean Sea, Turkey, Black Sea, Georgia, Russia, northern shores of Caspian Sea, Kazakhstan and ending in Mongolia.

Turkey is one of the most suitable countries from which the eclipse will be visible. Antalya and its districts together with Cappadocia and eastern Black Sea will be directly at the path's center.

Antalya, located at the Mediterranean coast is one of the luckiest places for this event because of its sunny climate.

The total eclipse in Turkey will begin at 09:40 LT will end at 12:20 LT. The complete solar eclipse will be at 11:04 LT.

This is a fantastic chance to see a great eclipse for most of Europeans in particular, as it will be their last easy chance to see a total eclipse of the sun in midland Europe until 2026. The next total eclipse in Eurasia is August 1, 2008. The major North American eclipse is on August 21 2017.

NASA suggested a trip to Antalya to astronomy enthusiasts on March 29, 2006. Since the eclipse occurs in midday in Antalya, Egypt and Libya the difference between darkness and light will be more.


We recommend to those who intend visiting Antalya on March 29th for this event, make their reservations as soon as possible."

Posted by Spidey at 3:07 AM 1 comments

TRAVELING TO/FROM TURKEY BY ROAD

TRAVELING TO/FROM TURKEY BY ROAD

All road and highways are well connected and well maintained to every part of Turkey. Coming from Europe to the Turkish border in the west at EDIRNE straight on highway E-80, through to Istanbul and Ankara. Following on highway E-80, crossing of the Bosphorus to Asia has been greatly speeded up Istanbul by-pass with 2 bridges of ATATURK BRIDGE and FATIH BRIDGE, leading to the Istanbul-Izmit express road.

By the other side; 3 great axis highways traversing Turkey are those to Syria and the Lebanon(Highway E-5), Iraq (Highway E-24) and Iran highway E-23). The route to Antalya follows the E-80 to IZMIT and then heads south.

If you will drive in Turkey an International Driving Permit (IDP) is recommended.
In Turkey traffic circulates on the right and the Turkish Highway Code is similar to those of Western countries. Outside urban areas speed limited to 90 kph(~55 mph)

Turkish highway and road signs conform to International Protocol on Road Signs.
Archaeological and historical sites are indicated by yellow sign posts.

For 'temporary entrance permit', 'international insurange' and other issues please visit website of TheTuring and Automobile Club Of Turkey

Information on Turkish highways, road conditions and on any question please visit the website of Turkish Highway System(TKY).

Drive defensively at all times. Turkey has one of the highest accident rates in the world. Fatal road accidents occur frequently. Avoid inter city driving after dark. The holidays, or BAYRAMs, like one of that follow month of Ramadan(RAMAZAN) are accompanied by a dramatic increase in traffic and the highest accident rates of the year. Driving times to Istanbul, from Ankara,7 hours and from Antalya is 12 hours.

Traveler can also reach Turkey by vehicle ferries. The Turkish Maritime Lines operates luxury service ferries for people whom travel with their own vehicles, from VENICE and BRINDISI to IZMIR/Çesme.

ÇESME is eastern point of Izmir peninsula and about 150 km north of Kusadasi. Road to Kusadasi from Çesme is in very good condition.

By the other side; Turkey has vast system of inter city coaches. Buses between big cities are inexpensive, convenient and amazingly modern. Ticket prices varies slightly, depending on service quality. Practically most fares are about US$4 per 100 kilometers(61 miles).

Every big city in Turkey has at least one bus station (OTOGAR). All the bus companies have a ticket office at the bus stations, and the larger companies have offices dotted around towns or cities center. In small towns coaches depart from town's main square area.

Istanbul International Bus Terminal (BÜYÜK OTOGAR) is located at European side of the city and it is 10 km (6 miles) west of the west of Sultanahmet at ESENLER / BAYRAMPASA district.

OTOGAR in Turkish means bus station.

International Istanbul Bus Terminal phone number is: 90(212) 658-0505.

Most of the major inter city companies have free shuttle transportation from different parts of the districts to the main bus station. Buses are so frequent and run everywhere day and night, even cross-country but you need reserve in advance especially around holidays.

Within the city of Istanbul, public transport is a good way of getting around. There are minibuses(dolmus), both city and private buses , taxis, trams (from Aksaray), subway(METRO) between Taksim and Levent, and a tiny electric tram car 'TÜNEL' (between Karakoy to Tunel). Dial (212)568-9970 for metro and tramway information in Istanbul, if you need. In Istanbul bus and tram tickets runs about $0.50 ea. USD.

Istanbul has a large fleet of yellow taxis, but a cheaper way of getting around the streets is to hire a dolmus, a shared taxi or minibus. It's an easy matter to rent a car; it's navigating the thing through the insane traffic that might prove to be difficult. Save it for excursions out of town.

The subway(METRO) of Istanbul project is still going on and the completed lines allow you to travel fast and inexpensively between Airport, the main inter city bus terminal(OTOGAR), and famous Sultanahmet Square if you transfer on foot between the AKSARAY and YUSUFPASA stations.

The DOLMUS, a special transportation service found only in Turkey, is a collective taxi or mini-bus(Van) follows specific routes and is recognizable by its yellow band. Each passenger pays according to the distance traveled and can get off at almost in any place possible.

Also DOLMUS provides a service within large cities, to suburbs, airports and often to neighboring towns. This is very commune and practical transportation service and it is slightly more than the regular buses but much more cheaper than the taxi cab.

Posted by Spidey at 2:33 AM 0 comments

Money in Turkey

Money:
As of January 1st, 2005, Turkey has its new lira.

The currency system in Turkey has changed and during 2005 both the old money with many zeros and the new Turkish liras can be used. In the old currency 6 zeros has been removed and The new lira (YTL) is formed. In order not to create any confusion, the new banknotes has the same color and same style with the old ones.


Due to high inflation of more than 25 years and no change of currency, Turkish money was having the most number of zeros in the world. So many zeros might cause a conflict in the beginning but its one of the only place where even a backpacker can feel himself a millionaire :). As zeros can cause conflict, In order to prevent from any mistakes, its much advised to remember the banknotes with its colors.

Nowadays when you visit a shop, you may see prices in two different format. Either with many zeros or the new Turkish lira form (YTL). For example 15,000,000 Lira or 15 YTL (New Turkish lira). Don't be confused, both are the same and during the year 2005 all prices will be displayed with the old and the new currency at the same time.

Money Exchange :
Should I exchange money before I go to Istanbul?

I suggest not. Many foreign banks abroad do use a quiet lower rate than its in Turkey. Turkish currency is easily obtainable upon arrival in Istanbul at any exchange office or bank 24 hrs. Daily exchange rates can be obtained from the Turkish Central Bank web site at www.tcmb.gov.tr. This site is in both Turkish and English, and gives links to all Turkish Banks. Turkish daily newspapers also publish daily rates.

There is no limit to the amount of foreign currency that may be brought into Turkey, but not more than $5,000 worth of Turkish currency may be brought into or taken out of the country.

I suggest to bring your ATM card and Credit cards, instead of carrying banknotes with you. There are thousands of ATM machines all around Istanbul. Credit cards are widely accepted by hotels, restaurants and most merchants. Travelers cheque are also accepted but not as frequent as credit cards. In touristy places, in case you need, you can shop with Euro or Dollar, but carrying Turkish banknotes shall always be preferred.

Turkish banknotes can be obtained from Banks, Post offices and Exchange offices. Do not ex-change your money on the street. Especially the old Turkish Lira has many zeros that could easily creates confusion, and when you exchange besides exchange offices and banks, you may face with problems.

Sourced : Lets Go Istanbul

Posted by Spidey at 1:14 AM 0 comments

Weather and Packing : Istanbul

Weather & Packing

Istanbul's weather is hot in summer and rather cold and rainy in winters. Depending on the season arrange your clothes, but before you pack do not forget to bring comfortable shoes. You will be walking in Istanbul quiet a lot. If you plan to use electrical equipments, Turkey uses 220 V, 50hz electricity system with two pins. If your home voltage and frequency is different, I advice to bring your adapters with you for your electrical equipments..

A small backpack or bag will be useful to be carried during the day. Hot summers will increase your daily water consumption and you can carry bottled water with it and your personal belongings."

Lets go Istanbul. Istanbul sights, attractions, hotels and restaurants:

Posted by Spidey at 1:02 AM 0 comments

0302-1 Istanbul Roofs

0302-1 Istanbul Roofs
Originally uploaded by solilos.

Posted by Spidey at 11:58 PM 0 comments

Cart

Cart
Originally uploaded by Heinekren.

Low-angle shot of another street merchant in Istanbul.

Posted by Spidey at 11:47 PM 0 comments

The Scavengers, Istanbul

The Scavengers, Istanbul
Originally uploaded by Heinekren.

A few kilometers from the tourists and markets of downtown Istanbul I came upon the homes of Turkey's poorest citizens, homeless masses who live in whatever shelter they can find and scavenge scrap metal from shipwrecks.

Posted by Spidey at 11:45 PM 0 comments

Sunset over Istanbul

Sunset over Istanbul
Originally uploaded by Cybjorg.

Posted by Spidey at 11:45 PM 0 comments

Istanbul, Turkey

Istanbul, Turkey
Originally uploaded by JET_ny.

The Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, originally a church and later converted into a mosque.. This ancient basilica was built by Constantine the Great in the 4th century and reconstructed by Justinian in the 6th century

Posted by Spidey at 11:44 PM 0 comments

TURKEY-ISTANBUL-ECLIPSE

TURKEY-ISTANBUL-ECLIPSE
Originally uploaded by fbischof.

Early stages of a full eclipse of the moon is seen behind the minaret of Yeni Cami (New Mosque) in Istanbul, 28 October 2004. AFP PHOTO/Mustafa Ozer

Posted by Spidey at 11:41 PM 0 comments

Istanbul Sunset

Istanbul Sunset
Originally uploaded by Karl O'Brien.

Sunset as viewed from the Galatta Tower, Istanbul

Posted by Spidey at 11:37 PM 0 comments

Trams - Istanbul

Istanbul'da
Originally uploaded by reen @ ISTANBUL.

could easily pass as a photo in Melbourne!

Posted by Spidey at 11:19 PM 0 comments

istanbul

istanbul
Originally uploaded by Mikimba.

Istanbul was Constantinople
Now it’s Istanbul, not Constantinople
Been a long time gone, Constantinople
Now it’s turkish delight on a moonlit night

Posted by Spidey at 11:14 PM 0 comments

Nationals of the following countries DO REQUIRE A VISA

Nationals of the following countries DO REQUIRE A VISA

a) Those from Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Netherlands (Holland), Hong Kong (British pass holders) Ireland, Italy, Malta, Portugal, Spain, the U.K. and the U.S.A. can obtain a multiple-entry sticker type visa at border gates for up to 3 months stay.

You do not need to apply for the visa before you leave your home country. There are no pre-immigration papers or forms that have to be filled out ahead of time either. You can easily see the Visa office, next to the Passport contours at Ataturk airport. Before you get in to the Passport control Visas to above mentioned Nationalities are due for Diplomatic reciprocity. And the Visa fee is also concern of the Reciprocity.

Visa fees : As of April 1, 2004 visa fee for US citizens has been reduced to 20,- USD for single entry up to three months.

more info? go here : sourced : Lets go Istanbul.

Posted by Spidey at 10:59 PM 0 comments

Lets go Istanbul.. Istanbul travel by bus.

Lets go Istanbul.. Istanbul travel by bus.:

Getting to Istanbul

By Bus & Coach

Istanbul has a quiet big bus terminal, 'International Istanbul Intercity Bus Terminal', is at Esenler. (10 Km to Sultanahmed). With 168 ticket offices and gates, its own Metro station, shops, restaurants, police station, clinic and mosque, the Esenler Otogar is virtually a town in itself. . Almost all international buses first visit the Bus terminal. There are regular Coach (Bus) services between Turkey and Austria, France, Germany, Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, Moldavia and Switzerland as well as Jordan, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Syria.

Buses from Europe are following the Greece and Bulgaria routes mainly. The two main routes are like this; Germany, Austria, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria - Turkey and Germany, Italy, Ferry to Greece - Turkey.

International Istanbul intercity Bus terminal tel: +90-212 658 05 05 - 658 10 10"

Posted by Spidey at 7:37 PM 0 comments

Istanbul Ataturk Airport - (AS)NCP

Istanbul Ataturk Airport - (AS)NCP
Originally uploaded by atomsphere.

Posted by Spidey at 6:33 PM 0 comments

ISTANBUL : Travelling from Airport to town

"Traveling to your hotel or place of stay..

From the airport..
For many years the only transport from Istanbul Ataturk airport to the city center, Taxis and airport coaches were the only alternatives..

As most tourists stay at the old Istanbul Peninsula, now there is an easy and convenient way of transport. The new rail system has reached to the airport and you can travel easily by this means of transport..

You can choose in between Metro, Airport shuttle services and taxis depending on your destination and your budget. If you are going to stay at Touristy peninsula (Aksaray, Sultanahmed) Metro and tram connection is a good alternative. If you are going to stay at Taksim, Beyoglu or nearby, you should think of Airport Shuttle or Taxis. If you are going to take a City bus from Istanbul, Metro also goes directly to the Main bus terminal.

By Metro:
After the arriving hall, when you go outside the main building, there you will see stairs down to the Metro stop.. In every 5 minutes there is a Metro running to Aksaray and the Touristy area starts from there. Metro operates between 06:00 to 24:00 hrs. The cost is 1,1 YTL (around 0,8USD.) And tokens can be obtained from the Airport metro station.

When you reached the last stop of Metro (Aksaray station), exit from the metro station, you will see the signs of the Tramline. You shall walk around 100 meters, Tramline is just a head of Metro station. You will arrive to 'Yusufpasa station' of the Tram line. You shall get on the Eminonu Line which is on the other side of the pedestrian passage. Tram tokens can be obtained in every stop and the cost is again 1,1 YTL.

Trams are passing in every 5 minutes. And they have a good air condition system. When you get on the tram the first stop is Aksaray, there are several hotels in this district, Watch out for yrs. The next stop is the University, followed by Beyazit and cemberlitas. Afterwards you will be in Sultanahmet square anot"

sourced/more : Lets go Istanbul.. Travel to your hotel.:

Posted by Spidey at 3:54 PM 0 comments

TURKEY : BUS Travel Istanbul to Antalya

Lets go Istanbul. Istanbul sights, attractions, hotels and restaurants:

By bus: Bus network in Turkiye is very well developed. You can reach almost all cities and towns from other cities and towns. Each city or town has their own bus terminals and travels are mainly operated from bus terminals. In Istanbul there are two Bus terminals each on one continent. The bus terminal in Esenler is the biggest and there is also one on the Asian side at Harem. Both terminals are used by bus companies."

The three reliable operating companies are Varan , Ulusoy and "BOSS".. And if they have no buses to your connection "Kamil koc", "Pamukkale", "Uludag" or "Metro" can also be chosen.

• Varan & Ulusoy do not use the Istanbul main bus terminal, besides they have sub stations.
• "BOSS" has very high quality service and probably the most pricy one, however you shall travel alone in a leather covered seat as seen on picture.

Note: Many bus companies has special call center lines which starts with "444 XX XX", which can be reached all around Turkey as local calls.

Istanbul – Antalya: Travel distance to Antalya is 710 Km around 10,5 hrs.

Varan : 444 8 999, Daily bus at 21:30 Departing from Caglayan (Europe) and Atasehir (Asian). Service shuttles from major locations. Ticket prices can be reached from this link, Varan Ticket Prices

Ulusoy : 444 1 888, Daily bus at 20:30 & 21:15. Departing from Merter (Europe) and Kucukyali (Asian). Service shuttles from major locations. Tickets one way 58,- YTL (~32 €)

BOSS: 444 0 880, Daily bus at 21:45, Departs from the Kasimpasa (Europe) and Atasehir (Asian), Service shuttles from major locations. Tickets one way 51,- YTL (~28, €)

*As of Jan1,2005 New YTL (Yeni lira) is being used in Turkey.

Posted by Spidey at 12:00 PM 0 comments

UK travellers to Europe -

From January 1 2006, UK Travellers will need a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) when travelling to Europe. The EHIC replaces the E111 form, is free of charge and allows you to benefit from free or reduced-cost medical care in any EEA country and Switzerland. For more information, visit www.dh.gov.uk.

Posted by Spidey at 9:19 AM 0 comments