Advice for hiking in Turkey?

June 10, 2009 2:02 PM

TurkeyFilter: A good friend and I want to spend 3-4 weeks in Turkey this August hiking the Lycian Way. First time traveler with some questions re: Turkey, backpacking, airtravel.

1. If anyone has hiked this, what are some "don't miss" sections? (we don't have time to walk the whole thing.)

2. Airfare: In general is it cheaper to fly out of Boston, NYC, Montreal? Or is it a crapshoot (my guess)? And the hike begins in southern Turkey, about a ten hour bus ride from Istanbul... is our best bet (costwise and experience-wise) to fly to Istanbul, see some sights and then bus it down? How many days should we devote to a decent shakedown of Istanbul?

3. Any must-see sights in southwestern, coastal Turkey? Turkey-centered travel tidbits?

My friend and I are both intermediate backpackers/hikers, and I'm a completely novice traveler. I've read the post below this on backpacking in Europe. Helpful, but I'm looking for hiking advice and Turkey advice.

Also - I'm a 23 yo woman, he's a 24 yo man, and we plan on camping along the way. In the process of searching Couchsurfing.

posted by pintapicasso to travel & transportation (6 comments total)

If you're Couchsurfing or staying at anyone's private home, it's very very very rude to show up without some kind of small gift - preferably something that will remind them of you / your country. It's very common with Turkish people that these small gifts are not presented immediately (unless they're something consumable, or flowers or something like that) but after a while. Some Turkish people wait until the end of the visit.
posted by Dee Xtrovert at 2:08 PM on June 10 [1 favorite]

I spent 4 days in Istanbul and it felt perfect, though I didn't have any jetlag and it was the spring; make it 5 to compensate for your time change. Be sure to take a boat up the Bosporus to Anadolu Kavagi/Yoros Castle to get a glimpse of the Black Sea!
posted by mdonley at 3:19 PM on June 10

Nothing to do with hiking but...

You'll want to carry a headscarf with you in case you come across a mosque you want to visit. Most (all?) mosques require headscarves on women and everyone has to remove their shoes (so wear socks - not really a problem when hiking).
posted by booth at 8:06 PM on June 10

1. I've only hiked a few kilometers of the path on a day trip when I was visiting Olympos, so I can't offer too much advice here. Olympos itself is great--a bit of a backpacker backwater, but the ruins are fun to explore, the beach is relaxing, and the chimera flame is pretty neat. I was there at the end of Ramazan in early October. It might be more crowded in August. If you choose to stay at one of the treehouse pensions in town, I'm a big fan of Bayram's, which is built in a pomegranate orchard and offers a relaxing summer-camp-meets-ghetto ambience.

2. Airfare is kind of a crapshoot, but I've seen some pretty good deals on tickets to Istanbul lately. A friend of mine just bought a ticket for late August for around $600, if I remember correctly. Bus travel in Turkey is cheap and easy, but there are also a number of domestic airlines with cheap flights to Antalya. Cost-wise and experience-wise, I'd take a bus and try to see at least a couple sights along the way. Depending on exactly where you're starting the trail, you might be able to hit Bursa, Bergama, Ephesus, Pamukkale, or some combination thereof without much trouble. As for Istanbul, I'd second 3-4 days, but another advantage of bus travel is that it's flexible--you can keep your schedule open and trade off a couple days along the coast if you feel like you need more time.

3. The only thing that comes to mind is that it will be really hot in August. Make sure you're prepared for lots of sun on the open areas of the trail. And have fun--sounds like an awesome trip!
posted by ecmendenhall at 7:57 AM on June 11

I spent 5 days in Instanbul. Don't miss giving Istiklal Cadessi a good wander and basically hanging out in the Beyoglu area. Modern and young Instanbul is not be missed.

I would suggest seeing Pammukkale, Ephasus and Sirence. I loved the town as Selcuk as a base, it's beautiful small town. Cost-wise the accomodation was cheapest for value in my two weeks in Turkey. So if you are going to splurge on a hotel you can spend 50 Turish Lira at the Hotel Nazar - they have a pool and home cooked food.

Take the bus - It is how most people travel in Turkey - And they bring you tea and snacks while on the road. Tureky is a great place to visit. People will see your backpack and immediately offer help finding the correct bus, dolmus, taxi, hotel. This may be their brother's business, but don't be afraid to either accept or refuse. I found everyone to be gracious and welcoming.
posted by Gor-ella at 8:45 AM on June 11 [1 favorite]

Depending on when in August you'll be in Turkey, be aware that Ramazan begins at sunset on August 20th. Life here changes, but it's if when you'll be here, it's a wonderful glimpse of another part of Turkish/Muslim life. The city provides free meals after sunset, in Iftar tents in a few places around the city. Outside of Istanbul and possibly Ankara, be prepared for things to shut down quite a lot; picnicking during the day is your best bet.

3 days in Istanbul is enough, 5 is ideal. Head to Taksim, but don't stay on the Istiklal unless you're into touristy things. Instead, head left or right, and explore it's side-streets. For nightlife, Vosvos on "Kuçuk Beyoglu" is my #1 favourite pub. Excellent music (a bit of American pop, but mostly popular Turkish tunes). The rooftop bar at Ritim Roof, in the "Balik Pazar" (fish bazar) is a great casual place to go dancing, and has cheap drinks. It doesn't start getting busy until later, though.

In Sultanahmet, the Blue Mosque, and Hagia Sophia are obvious spots. Like booth mentionned, make sure you have some sort of a scarf to wear (even though they still let you in without it, it's respectful), and also make sure you're not wearing a tank top, shorts or just leggings. Otherwise they'll make you wrap yourself in a bright blue cloth, which just screams *infidel*. ;)


I currently live in Istanbul, and would love to show you around! (though I don't have a couch available, sorry. I'm living with a host family) If you want to meet up while you're in the city, just memail me.
posted by hasna at 1:26 PM on June 20