Kalkan Turkey Forum - EnjoyKalkan.com
Kalkan Discussion => General Discussion => Topic started by: ed2 on July 02, 2010, 12:02:59 AM
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Hi guys.
I have been saving up every little bit of spare cash through college for the last 12 months to afford a holiday for my girlfriend and I and we just fell in love with Kalkan as a destination for us. We are flying on Monday morning to arrive at midday in Dalaman, so we hope to be in Kalkan (well, our hotel is 1.7km away) by evening time.
My question is this. The current UK exchange rate seems to be around 2.28 tyl for 1GBP. Is it better to bring say £20 worth and exchange the rest of the money over in Kalkan?
If so, is there plenty of places to change our money in Kalkan and if so, where?
I have searched through the forums and I am struggling to find any information that helps me entirely. I'm really nervous because it is the first time either myself of my girlfriend have flown out on holiday without one of our parents! Even though I'm 20 and she's 19, I am still really nervous of it!! Especially as the holiday has so far cost me £600 of my really hard earned money and I want to get the most we can out of the exchange rates!
Many thanks and I can't wait to get over to Kalkan! Yay!!
Ed
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Hi Ed
The exchange rate is better in Kalkan. You will be able to change up your money at the post office and the banks but you will probably need to take your passport with you. Dont forget to have your £10 note on arrival at Dalaman for your visa!!
You will love Kalkan, the people and their hospitality!! Have a great time ENJOY!!
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Thats a £10 note each for your visa :)
As mentioned the exchange rate is better in Kalkan, however as a tip for you remember to let your bank know if you are going to be using your card abroad as if you havent done it before then it may not work due to anti fraud measures. Also, all bank cards dont work in all ATMs if you are going down the ATM route - really dont know why but my Halifax card wont work in DenizBank machines (system error 12) but works fine at AK Bank!
Have a wonderful time......... Im sure you will anyway :)
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hi mate, you will always get a better rate selling currency than to buying it. so i would change it up in Kalkan.
Have a good time.
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Ed,
There are loads of places in the town itself to change money - bars, restaurants, shops etc. Most of them will have signs outside with that days exchange rate and you wont need your passpport in the shops to exchange money. Alternatively your hotel will probably change money too, but you dont usually get as good a rate as you would be paying for the convenience.
Great choice for a first holiday abroad ;D ;D
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Make sure you know the value of the Turkish Lire and don't tip the taxi driver £30.00 like I did on my first visit to Turkey many years ago
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Ha ha Alan, how funny! I did the opposite - it was when there were millions of lira to the pound and we left a 2p tip for our first meal in a reastaurant! We were horrified when we realised. :D
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Wow! Thank you for all of the speedy replies!!
It has been very helpful to read! I am getting a bit worried at all the little extras I'm outlaying! I've spent an extra £24 on parking, £22 on holiday insurance and now £20 on visas! Ouch the spending money is dropping down fast!! :( Where do we buy the visas from and how long does it take? I'm worried we might end up missing our transfer!!
Thank you for the information regarding exchanging at Kalkan. It is very convenient for me to do that! Will I get a good exchange rate if I draw out in Kalkan from an ATM or is it better to borrow the cash and bring the sterling? Reason I ask is that my last £140 spending money doesn't go into my bank until monday midday, when I have already left the UK! Doh!!
How will I find the eating out prices in Kalkan? I mean, we are not hugely exotic eaters as we are both vegetarians and my girlfriend is allergic to eggs! DIFFICULT! lol so we will be going for pasta type dishes and only 1 course too, with probably soft drinks and maybe local spirits! How much do you think we would be looking for a 1 course meal such as a pasta dish or pizzas? It's not cultural I know but it is often all we can eat due to my girlfriend's allergies!
Thanks very much for all the help so far guys! It's appreciated :)
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youget your visa after you get off the plane..just follow the crowd..most will be buying them...then go to passport control and then your luggage ..when you come out of the airport go straight ahead and you will see all the transfer boards and meeters..you won't miss your transfer everyone has to do the same
try foto pizza at the top of the village..great pizzas and a decent size ;)
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Veggie ? try Ali Babas,past the taxi rank on the way into the old town,lentil soup and spicy lentil soup,which isnt spicy for some reason,its good stuff,have a basket of bread and a Efes and it will do you for lunch,dont forget to put a splash of vinegar in the soup,strange but good,I almost live on the soup here when Im in Kalkan,4tkl for the soup.
Ali Babas isnt known as the soup kitchen for nothing. ;D
you can also pay in stirling in most places.
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Ed, I see you're staying in a hotel 1.7 km outside of Kalkan, so you will need to walk in and out of Kalkan centre to avoid spending your money on taxis - what's the name of your hotel? If you have breakfast included, I'd eat loads then to fill you up ;D ;D ;D . Oz Adana is great for cheap food - pide (turkish pizza) is very reasonable and they bring you a lovely mezze starter (free). Drinking in bars will account for most of your spending...well that's where most of our money goes :o - my BH claims it goes on bags :P Ali Baba's does great soups and again is very reasonable..you can eat out (with beer) for about 50tl in those places. If you take your money out of the ATM when you get here, there will be a charge in the UK to your bank account - probably about £2
You will have a fantastic time, I'm sure :)
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I agree with K4E,Oz Adana ( in the side street next to Teskom supermarket )cheap,nice pide and free meze,If you are on a budget eat plenty of the free bread that you get in most places,its really nice,and if you like olives ect,call in one of the super markets and get a tub from the Deli counter ( Kartin has nice stuffed olives ) they will do for a munch if you are at the beach.
1.7 klm out side Kalkan,thats a fair walk,hopefully you wont have much of a climb !
Have a good one. 8)
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ed2
Kalkan is a vegetarians dream come true there is lots of great vegetarian food. Nearly all the Meze platters are veggie and they use a lot of corgettes and Aubergines in their cooking. There is a great dish called Imam Bialdi (translates as priest fainted) which is aubergine stuffed with onions & tomatoes and cougettes. Veggie food is cheap and filling so you should be ok. Use the cheaper restaurants away from the harbour.
M
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No wonder the priest fainted...Aubergines are horrible!! :-X
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Have a look at the General advice section for other useful hints and tips.
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I agree with K4E,Oz Adana ( in the side street next to Teskom supermarket )cheap,nice pide and free meze,If you are on a budget eat plenty of the free bread that you get in most places,its really nice,and if you like olives ect,call in one of the super markets and get a tub from the Deli counter ( Kartin has nice stuffed olives ) they will do for a munch if you are at the beach.
1.7 klm out side Kalkan,thats a fair walk,hopefully you wont have much of a climb !
Have a good one. 8)
Exen better try Extinct next door, excellent pide, pizzas and salads - and this year I think a little bit cheaper than Oz Adana
Also if (when) you go to Patara beach try Tloss (first restaurant on your left if you turn towards Patara village) excellent food and very cheap.
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Tlos is very good. Osman is an excellent chef...but they don't sell alcohol so wine is out with lunch!!..so that keeps the cost down ;)
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cheaper than oz adana is meydan adana on the roundabout. similar menu but cheaper and good quality. regards to extinct we have found it expensive this year.
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You can always buy the ready cooked chickens...the man on the roundabout next to bulent the butcher is 10tl....but the new man just up past Kaya on the way to market(old Ilban) is 10TL but he gives you salad ;)
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This is NOT an advert, but I had to reply to this thread, even though my family own the eaterie in question! If you're on a limited budget, come and try Cafe Leon (right turn at Moonlight Bar, behind the park halfway down that rd) Breakast, light bites, cakes & drinks daytime & nightime. All the menu items are under 10 lira, and if you're sticking to soft drinks, most of these are 3/4 lira each. You can eat a good lunch or evening meal with a drink and cake for 15 lira, which has to be good value! The cafe has lots of veggie options too.
Enjoy your time in Kalkan, I'm sure you will - as everyone says, it's a fab place, and everyone will be v welcoming to you and your other half
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Jane, we went to your place and we had a lovely lunch, plus we fell in love with your gorgeous puppy. Hadn't realised you were open of an evening too...we wish you well with this great new addition to Kalkan
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Blue Lizard they are vegitarians - chickens don't do it for them!
Ed2 I'm sure you will have a great time and will manage to find cheap eating places.
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Oops! forgot they were Vegetarians!..still more chickens for us carnivores to munch on.....and whoever said lizards taste like chicken is lying......we taste vile ;)
Pasta in fotos is good Mrs L had it ...(top of hill by taxi rank)
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cheaper than oz adana is meydan adana on the roundabout. similar menu but cheaper and good quality. regards to extinct we have found it expensive this year.
We went back to Extinct on Saturday and the prices did appear have gone up quıte a bit since our last visit; eg Fish Casserole was 29TL up from 23TL.
However, ıt now comes wıth a free salad, pide bread, some very nice Mezes and a small dessert. So still great value although possibly not the best marketing strategy (bit like calling a restaurant Extinct) as the headline price will put some passers by off.
The food was as good as ever and we left happy, stuffed and wıth a bill of 85TL for 3.