From Antarctica to Zimbabwe, if you're going there chances are Lonely Planet has been there first. With a pithy and matter-of-fact writing style, these guides are guaranteed to calm the nerves of first-time world travelers, while still listing off-the-beaten-path finds sure to thrill even the most jaded globetrotters. Lonely Planet has been perfecting its guidebooks for nearly 30 years, and as a result has experience and know-how similar to an older sibling's "been there" advice. The original backpacker's bible, the LP series has recently widened its reach. While still giving insights for the low-budget traveler, the books now list a wide range of accommodations and itineraries for those with less time than money.

This bestselling guide is the ticket to no-nonsense travel in Turkey. Far-reaching coverage of the sights--from the modern to the ancient--is complemented by a Turkish food guide, useful language section and glossary, and thorough accommodation coverage (from hostels to hotels). A section devoted to Turkish carpets explains everything from traditional patterns to making a good buy. --Kathryn True


Book Description
Wander through the ruins of classical cities, haggle for bargains in Istanbul's Grand Bazaar and go underground in Cappadocia. This comprehensive guide shows you the real Turkey. Soak up the sun – laze on the beaches of the Aegean, Black Sea and Mediterranean Coasts Taste the food – try meze, kebaps, seafood and Turkish delight Take a hike – climb Mt Nemrut, trek the Kackar Mountains or do a city walking tour Meet and greet – mix with the locals using our invaluable language chapter Find your way – our 112 detailed maps will take you where you want to go


From the Publisher
Destination Turkey As perfect holiday destinations go, Turkey is hard to beat. The country has everything - a climate that guarantees summer sunshine, beautiful beaches, dramatic scenery, more classical ruins than Greece or Italy, fantastic cuisine, matchless public transport and a resort nightlife that is second to none. But hospitality has always played a starring role in Turkish culture, and for most people what will probably linger longest in the memory is the incredible friendliness of the Turks themselves. Turkey can be whatever you want it to be. Take Istanbul: the old city center is as romantically exotic as you could hope for, its skyline a parade of graceful domes and minarets, its bazaars awash with the sights, sounds and smells of the East. An evening stroll down Istiklal Caddesi, however, presents an Istanbul that is ready to take its place at the European table, an Istanbul of pavement cafes, trendy bars and modern clothes shops. Straddling two continents, Turkey can seem comfortingly familiar provided you stick to the western coast. Strike out east, though, and you're quickly into territory where adventure waits around every corner. Even today not many people make it to Sanliurfa, Van or Dogubayazit, which means that for those who do it's still possible to capture that marvellous sense of discovery. But you don't even need to go as far as that, since there are still parts of western Anatolia that rarely see a foreign visitor. Hos geldiniz! (Welcome!) Sit down, have a glass of cay (tea), listen to the call to prayer and prepare to have a wonderful time.


Excerpted from Lonely Planet Turkey (Lonely Planet Turkey) by Pat Yale, Verity Campbell, Richard Plunkett. Copyright © 2003. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
Turkey is Asia's foothold in Europe, a melting pot of cultures and a bridge between continents. Here the contemporary and the ancient, the cosmopolitan and the bucolic, the spiritual and the hedonistic come together to create a vibrant, diverse and exciting whole. The Turkish Republic is modernizing rapidly - sometimes so fast you'd swear you can actually see it happening in front of you. It's secular and Western-oriented and boasts a vigorous free-enterprise economy. The Turkish people have an unrivaled reputation for hospitality, which the touts haven't managed to vanquish, try as they may. The cuisine is to die for, the coastline a dream, and many Turkish cities are dotted with spectacular old mosques and castles. To top it off, while costs are certainly rising, Turkey remains the Mediterranean coast's bargain-basement travel destination. Anatolia, the Turkish mainland, has a long, colorful and complex history, and it helps to know a little of it before you arrive. The world's oldest "city", dating from c.7500 BCE, was discovered at Catal Hoyuk near Konya. Then came the Hittite Empire (mentioned in the Bible but little known in the West), which rivalled that of ancient Egypt and left behind captivating works of art. The Turkish landmass was then the stage upon which countless empires and kingdoms flourished and declined. Many of the most famous sites from classical Greek culture are not in Greece at all but in Turkey, including the ruins of cities such as Troy, Pergamum, Ephesus, Miletus and Halicarnassus (Bodrum). Most modern Turkish cities boast a Roman past and several crop up in the Bible. With the coming of the Seljuks in the 11th century, Turkey began to take on a truly "Turkish" identity, and the great mosques and medreses (seminaries) of Konya are a reminder of that early glory. The Ottoman Empire that arose in the early 14th century expanded to rule the entire eastern Mediterranean, much of Eastern Europe and North Africa for six centuries. The myriad customs, cultures, languages and religions of the sultans' vast domains came together in the imperial capital, Istanbul, surely one of the world's most fascinating and romantic cities - you need days there to do it justice. However, Turkey is much more than its history. With over 7000km of coastline it's an excellent destination for water sports, especially along the Mediterranean, which basks in an average 300 sunny days a year. There's trekking in the pine-clad alpine Kackar Mountains of the eastern Black Sea coast, mountaineering on biblical Mt Ararat (5137m) and tandem paragliding at Oludeniz. Then there's Cappadocia with its spectacular scenery created by the outpourings of Mts Erciyes and Hasan in prehistory. The underground cities and rock-cut churches with their colorful frescoes will take your breath away. Come to Turkey, too, to hike the 509km Lycian Way, a waymarked path along the coves and headlands of the southern Mediterranean. And who could resist a Blue Voyage, a chance to spend a few days cruising along the azure coast, dropping in at hidden bays, on a gulet (wooden yacht)? Turkey is vast and you need lots of time to see it all, but, thanks to an excellent network of buses, travelling about is a doddle. Hos geldiniz! (Welcome!) You're in Turkey. Sit down, have a glass of cay (tea), listen to the call to prayer, enjoy the energy and color, and prepare for a wonderful time.