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Useful information about Turkey

* Information is for reference only and is subject to changes

Location: Eastern Mediterranean. Located on two continents Europe and Asia. The European part of Turkey is called Thrace, while the Asian part is called Anatolia or Asia Minor

Area: 814 578 Km2 (314 500 square miles) 3% on the European continent, 97% on the Asian continent

Capital: Ankara

Language:Turkish

Weather: Average Temperature for Major Regions (in celsius)

  Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
ANTALYA (South) 10 11 13 16 20 25 28 28 25 20 15 12
IZMIR (West) 9 10 11 16 20 25 28 27 23 18 15 10
ISTANBUL (Northeast) 5 6 7 12 16 21 23 23 20 16 12 8
TRABZON (North) 6 6 7 11 15 20 22 22 19 15 12 9
ANKARA (Central) 0 1 5 11 16 20 23 23 18 13 8 2
ERZURUM (East) -9 -7 -3 5 11 15 19 20 15 9 2 -5
DIYARBAKIR (Southeast) 2 2 8 14 19 26 31 31 25 17 10 4

Currency: The New Turkish Lira (YTL) comes in notes of 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100. The New Kuruş (YKr) comes in coins of 1, 5, 10, 25, 50 and one New Turkish Lira. One hundred New Kuruş equals one New Turkish Lira.

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

Religion: 99 percent of the population is Muslim. Turkey is a secular state that assures complete freedom of worship to non-Muslims

Time: Local time is equal to GMT + 2 hours. Same time zone all over the country (seven hours ahead of U.S. eastern standard time)

Electricity: 220 volts, round European 2-prong plug Important service telephone numbers: Polis (Police) 155, Emergency 112 International Operator 118, Municipal Police (Zabita) 153

What to wear:
Marmara, Aegean and Mediterranean coasts: Light, cotton summer clothing and cardigans for evening.
Black Sea, Central and Eastern Anatolia: Summer wear, warmer clothing should be taken for cool evenings at high altitudes.

  • Comfortable shoes are necessary for visiting archeological and historical sites.
  • Sun hats and sunglasses are advisable in the summer.
  • Headscarves should be brought by women for visiting mosques.