Everything in this guide is small, and all of it is easier to deal with before you land than in an arrivals hall at one in the morning. None of it is complicated once you know the shape of it.
Entry rules and your passport
Many nationalities, including most EU citizens and British visitors, enter Türkiye without a visa for short tourist stays; others need an e-visa, which is issued online in minutes. Two things catch people out more often than the visa itself: passports normally need validity beyond the end of your stay, and a child needs their own travel document. Check your own nationality on the official Turkish e-visa site shortly before you travel - rules change, and only the official source is current.
Money: lira, cards and cash
- The currency is the Turkish lira (TRY). Prices in tourist areas are often quoted in euros as well, but change is given in lira.
- Cards work almost everywhere - hotels, supermarkets, restaurants, pharmacies. Contactless is standard.
- Keep some cash for small things: market stalls, a village café, parking, tips, a dolmuş fare.
- Airport exchange rates are the worst you will see; change a small amount there if you need it and the rest in town, or withdraw from a bank ATM.
- If an ATM or a card terminal offers to charge you in your home currency, decline and pay in lira - the conversion is rarely in your favour.
Our own transfers are paid in cash to the driver on arrival, in euros or lira, with the price fixed before you travel - so you do not need to find a bank machine before the drive to the hotel.
Staying connected: SIM or eSIM
Turkish tourist SIM cards are sold in the arrivals halls and in town, and you will need your passport to register one. An eSIM bought before departure is usually cheaper and is active the moment you land, which is the practical advantage: you can message the driver, open a map or call the hotel before you have queued for anything. Hotel wifi is widespread and generally decent, so a local number is a convenience rather than a necessity for a week's holiday.
Tipping, honestly
- Restaurants: around 5-10% if you were happy, more in a smarter place; check whether service is already on the bill.
- Hotel housekeeping and porters: a small note left in the room or handed over is normal and appreciated.
- Transfer drivers: never required and never added to the price. A few euros for help with heavy luggage or a late-night run is a kindness, not an expectation.
- Guides on a day tour: usual practice is a small amount per person at the end of the day.
- Taxis: rounding up is enough.
Your first hour, in order
- Passport control, then baggage reclaim - budget 20 to 45 minutes in peak season.
- Turn on your eSIM or buy a SIM if you want a local number.
- Change a small amount of cash only if you need lira immediately.
- Walk through to the arrivals hall and the meet & greet area J / 777, where our team holds your booking and takes you to the driver.
- Water, air conditioning and the drive - 35 to 40 minutes to Belek, about two hours to Alanya.