Turkey Facts: Everything You Wanted to Know About Turkey

If you've never been to Turkey before, the chances are you will have preconceived ideas of what the country is like. Some of these may be true, but many won't, as Turkey is really a surprising country with many different facets to explore. Turkey offers great variety, but one thing you'll find, no matter where you go, is its people are extremely friendly and welcoming, happy to lend a hand if you need one, and always interested to hear where you've come from and where you're going!

• While Istanbul has been the capital of several empires, it is not the current capital of the Republic of Turkey as the city of Ankara was chosen for this honor when the Republic was formed in 1923.
• Turkish is the official language of Turkey and it's renowned as a difficult language to pick up! However, in many of the tourist areas hotel staff and restaurant servers will know a limited amount of English anyway, but if you can learn a few Turkish words and phrases the locals will really appreciate your efforts!
• The Turkish Lira is the official currency of Turkey. As with most currency, the exchange rate fluctuates quite a bit so it is important to check right before your departure date. Credit cards are widely accepted in many stores and restaurants of major towns and tourist areas, and it's easy to change money from US dollars to Lira at the plentiful bureau de change offices.
• In Turkey they have 220V electricity and a European style plug. Unless you're in a particularly rural area, the supply of electricity is very reliable, so don't worry about outages. Do bring a travel adapter like the top-rated Universal World Wide Travel Charger Adapter Plug with you though, and bear in mind that not all electronics will work without a transformer.

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