The biggest question is the same before coming to Turkey which is ”Is it safe to travel to Turkey?”. Turkey suffered from some incidents related to Syrian and Iraqi border problems in the past. Thanks to some well maintained foreign affairs policies and some strong stand against the extremist groups. There are some travel warnings against the tourist traveling to the southeastern borders of Turkey. It is not recommended to get less than 10 kilometers close to the border area.
To tell the truth this will not affect any tourist since most of the touristic sights in Turkey are far from these spots. Please keep it in mind that Turkey is a massive country. Istanbul is 1.200 kilometers from Syria or Ephesus is 1.345 kilometers from Syria. Distance and well-taken security precautions will keep you from harm’s way.
Tourism is big in Turkey. I mean very, very BIG! Turkey was the 6th most popular tourist destination in the world in 2014,. 42 million foreign tourists visited Turkey. We want to keep our country safe and prosper.
There have been more than 3 years since the last major terror event took place in Turkey. Turkish security officials and Turkish people try their best to keep it as peaceful as possible. You will not find anything amiss, and you will see the Turkish people are as welcoming as ever.
Safety tips for Men traveling to Turkey
- Be careful with very well looking and very friendly single women offering you a drink. If you come up with a lady like this you should say ”Let’s head to another club where my friends are”. If this person has the intention of robbing you, she will leave you immediately but if she follows it can be a sign of good intentions.
- Turks are very proud of their nationality, customs, and family. Using disrespectful language can be understood wrongly even if you are joking. Some slang used in other countries can backfire in Turkey.
- Color combinations of black and white, blue, and yellow or red and yellow are not recommended a lot since these are the colors of the biggest Turkish football teams. Violence in sports is not a very common thing in modern Turkey but still, you will want to keep joking taunts of the people away.
—- Ask a Turkish tour guide about Safety in Turkey —-
Safety tips for Women traveling to Turkey
- Islam has an undeserved reputation for promoting violence against women. The situation in Turkey is against all the expectations. Turkey is strongly westernized Muslim country and secular and moderate Islamic traditions of respecting women are well settled.
- If a man tries to stalk you, simply tell him to stop very loudly. Turkish people have very low tolerance on people harassing women. Any man warned in public will go away immediately. I heard many stories of women have done this, and the offending male was literally kissing pavement.
- Dress code in Turkey is not strict. Any clothes which will be accepted in the western capitals of the world will be respected in Turkey too. It is important to put on a head scarf when you visit a mosque due to Islamic tradition. There is no need to cover your hair in Turkey at all times.
What to do in Turkey if you feel threatened?
If you wish to report criminal activity or suspicion to the police, find any phone and call 155. It is free of charge to call the police in Turkey. Turkey is not different than most of the countries in the world. You can follow these suggestions for keeping away from crime wherever you go.
—- Ask a Turkish tour guide about Safety in Turkey —-
Travel advisory notices about Turkey from different sources
Department of State of the United States rates Turkey as “Level 2”, which is the second-least severe of travel warning categories.
Message to U.S. Citizens – Wildfires in Southern Turkey on July 28, 2021
British nationals made over 2.5 million visits to Turkey in 2019. Most visits are trouble-free. Be alert to your surroundings and remain vigilant in crowded places. – gov.uk
https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/turkey
Exercise a high degree of caution – which is the second-least severe of travel warning categories of Official Global Travel Advisory of Canada.
