|
|||
 This will vary depending on the region you intend to visit and the type of holiday you are planning. The tourist season runs from the beginning of April to the end of October, and most resorts are at their hottest and busiest in July and August. You will pay most for your holiday from July to mid-September, which is considered the 'peak season' by most package tour operators, but in return you will find everything open and the social scene in full swing.For the majority of beach and sightseeing holidays spring and autumn are good times to go. The elimate in Istanbul and on the Aegean and Mediterranean coasts is ideal for sunbathing between April and June and in September and October - when temperatures are hot but not uncomfortable - and you will find fewer crowds.
Central Anatolia is slightly cooler at these times, but just right for sightseeing and touring. Most tour operators offer their cheapest deals in April, with prices rising a little for May, June and October.
If you are planning a watersports holiday you may prefer to visit Turkey in August or September, when water temperatures are at their warmest. But don't worry, if you do decide to go in May, June, July or October, you'll still find the water warm by British standards.
If you are planning a trip to eastem Anatolia and are hoping for warm temperatures, July and August are definitely your best bet as spring and autumn can be fairly cool in this region. Unless you are planning a winter skiing holiday in one of the main resorts, travel is not recommended in this region between October and April as snowfalls can be very heavy and certain roads may be impassable.
EventsThe dates for Muslim religious festivals are celebrated according to a lunar calendar; the dates are locked in every few years by Muslim authorities. Only two religious holidays are public holidays: Seker Bayrami, a 3-day festival at the end of Ramazan (30 days in December-January when a good Muslim lets nothing pass the lips during daylight hours), and Kurban Bayrami (March-April) which commemorates Abraham's near-sacrifice of Ismael on Mt Moriah.
In commemoration of God permitting Abraham to sacrifice a ram instead of his son, every Turkish household who can afford a sheep buys one, takes it home and slits its throat right after the early morning prayers on the actual day of the bayram. Family and friends immediately cook up a feast. You must plan for Kurban Bayrami: most banks close for a full week, transportation will be packed and hotel rooms will be scarce and expensive.
Secular festivities include camel-wrestling in mid-January, in the village of Selçuk, south of Izmir, and National Sovereignty Day, April 23, a big holiday to celebrate the first meeting of the republican parliament in 1920. Celebrations abound in summer: there's a sloppy oiled wrestling festival in early June at Sarayiçi, near Edirne; the country Kafkasör Festival near Artvin in northeastern Turkey in the 3rd week of June; the International Istanbul Festival of the Arts (late June to mid-July); Bursa's Folklore and Music Festival in mid-July and Diyarbakir's Watermelon Festival in mid or late September. The whole country stops, just for a moment, at 9:05am November 10, the time of Atatürk's death in 1938.
|
 destinationturkey
4INFO
4TRAVELER'S GUIDE
4TOURISTIC REGIONS
4FACTBOOK
4POPULAR STARS
4SHOPPING
4SISTER SITES
|
||
TURKEY
POSTER STORES
This website is created and designed by Zebra, 2006
