About Turkey
 
Turkey is a geographically diverse country with snow capped mountains and broad rivers in the east to green coasts and rich agricultural valleys in the west, lush, rainy, temperate climate in the north and a hot, dry climate in the south. Stretching from the nation's border with Greece to it's frontier with Syria, the Turkish Coastline has thousands of miles of unspoiled sandy beaches and coves fringed by pine forests, hundreds of pristine fishing villages and market towns.
 
The country also has a wealth of ancient ruins the like of which cannot be found anywhere else in the world.
 
The nation is one of the largest in Europe and is about the size of Britain and France combined. The population of Turkey is approximately 70 million.
The country is unique in that 97% of it's land mass lies in Asia with the remaining 3% in Europe. The Asian side is known as Anatolia and the European side, Thrace. The two are separated by the Dardanelles (Canakkale) and by the Bosphorous Straights in Istanbul. Istanbul is Turkey's largest and most famous city, it's capital is Ankara. Although Turkey is 99% Muslim, it is a secular state that guarantees complete freedom of worship to non-Muslims.
From April to October, most places in Turkey have an ideal climate that is perfect for relaxing on sandy beaches or enjoying the tranquility of mountains and lakes.
 
The coolest months are from November - March. Time Zones
Turkish Standard Time is seven hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time and two hours ahead of Greenwich Mean Time.
Electricity
Electricity in Turkey is 220 volts. The speed for electronics is fifty cycles.
Two-round prongs are the standard plugs for electrical appliances.
Customs
 
Visitors to Turkey may avail of the following duty free allowances: 400 cigarettes, 50 cigars, 1kg tobacco, 1kg coffee, 1.5kg instant coffee, up to seven bottles of spirits of which no more than three can be of the same brand.
Valuable items such as electronics, antiques and sports equipment brought into the country will be registered into the owners' passports. Travellers leaving without these imported items would have to pay duties. Gifts not exceeding $285 in value may be brought into the country duty free.