Welcome to Istanbul

Istanbul, capital city of three successive empires with over 2,000 years of history and fabulous turquoise blue water fronts, Welcomes you to share this amazing experience on the crossroads of Europe and Asia..

The former capital of three successive empires, Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman empires, Istanbul still preserves the legacy of its past while looking forward to a modern future. In Istanbul you can feel Orient on your one side and Europe on the other side or a wonderful mix of different cultures all around you. Enjoy the harmony of cultures, enjoy the harmony of people & enjoy the rhythm of diversities in Istanbul. Historical landmarks of the city are in harmony with the wonderful Turquoise blues of Bosphorus, which creates an unbeaten landscape. Istanbul is the only city in the world where you can enjoy your meal with the landscape of another continent.

This is a special website designed for travelers who are planning, wishing or dreaming to visit Istanbul for their next journeys. Here, you will find many useful information about Istanbul, that you may need before coming, while you are in Istanbul and when you are leaving Istanbul.

Practical Info about Istanbul

• Istanbul is at GMT +2 hour zone.
• Turkey has no regulations concerning vaccinations.However there are swine flu controls at the airports. Basicly on body heat.
• Turkey Uses 220 V, 50 Hz electrical system.
• GSM (Non-North American) standard mobile cellular telephones functions. 900/1800.
• Weekdays are Monday to Friday, Banking hours are from 09:00 to 17:00.
• Turkish lira is used in the country, all major currencies can be converted at Banks and Exchange offices. Turkey has a new Lira system. Six zeros has been removed from the old currency.
• As of 1 January 2009 Turkey has new money banknotes. These new banknotes are due for transisin from the New Turkish Lira ( YTL) to Turkish Lira (TL). The old banknotes will be valid till the year end and during 2009, both the YTL banknotes and TL banknotes will be used. In this respect, you shall not be puzzled to see two different for 5,10, 20, 50 or 100 lira banknotes. Different than the old YTL banknotes, new TL banknotes has 200 TL banknotes, which is roughly 100 Euro. For further details visit the money section or www.tcmb.gov.tr
• Official Holidays: Jan 1 - New years day, April23 - Children's day, May 19 - Youths day, August 30 - Independence day, Oct 29 - Republic day.
• Religious Holidays: There are also two long Religious Holidays, dates are changing according to Islamic Calendar. Islamic Holidays for 2011 will be as follows from 29th of August to 1st of September Ramadan Break and from 5th of November to 9th of November Eid break