Istanbul What to Pack

Clothing/Shoes/Weather Gear: Even in summer, expect to wear long pants (or long skirts for women) and shirts with at least short sleeves. This is because mosques forbid shorts and short skirts and bare shoulders and you will likely be touring mosques during your stay in Istanbul. Also, most Turkish men do not wear shorts, so you will stick out much more as a tourist if you are wearing shorts. Also, women should bring a scarf or two to carry in your purse so that you will have one to wear when touring mosques.

Toiletries and Medical Supplies: Bring plenty of toilet paper, since public bathrooms often do not have (or run out of) toilet paper. Also bring wipes and hand cleaner. If you have fair skin, also bring sunscreen, since you will do a lot of walking outdoors in Istanbul.

In terms of medical supplies, bring something for diarrhea and food poisoning. We brought Immodium and did need it once in our 10-day visit.

Photo Equipment: Bring lots of memory card capacity, extra batteries, and a charger. You will probably take a ton of photos and videos in Istanbul, and will burn through memory and batteries more quickly than usual. Photo equipment is available for sale in Istanbul, but is much more expensive than in the USA.

Miscellaneous: Bring the following guide books:

The Istanbul book from the DK Eyewitness travel series. It has lots of photos and info about not only the main tourist sights, but also about numerous less well-known sights thrughout the city.

Rick Steve's Istanbul book. It contains well thought out self-guided tours through some of the main tourist sites.

Top 10 Istanbul. This book has numerous top 10 lists (Top 10 mosques, Top 10 museums, etc.) that help you make decisions about how to spend your time.

Clothing/Shoes/Weather Gear: Since the weather changes every day, I packed clothes for every occasion. Some days I needed to use pullover and jacket. I was expecting it to be hotter that time of year, but found every day different.

Toiletries and Medical Supplies: Is always better to have fresh bottled water, as Istanbul is known for dodgy tap water.

Photo Equipment: A camera is essential to capture all these Islamic art details, street scenes, the Bosporus, etc.

Luggage and bags: It is hard to visit Istanbul and come back home without any souvenirs. Be sure to leave some space in your bags for a water pipe or a backgammon game. You could even put a small collapsible bag inside your luggage, leaving it reserved for things purchased at the Grand Bazaar or the Arasta Bazaar.

Clothing/Shoes/Weather Gear: A lot of people make the mistake of assuming Istanbul is warm the entire year. If you are traveling in the late winter/early spring, bring an umbrella and a warm jacket. I could not believe how cold it was in March, not to mention how much it rained!

Toiletries and Medical Supplies: Unless you find a supermarket, most shops have a limited supply of toiletry options. Sure, you can find aftershave lotion, but it might not be of the same quality that you are used to in your home country.

Photo Equipment: Bring plenty of film, as you will likely pay a lot more for it in Istanbul. Plus, the quality might not be the same. If you need a replacement battery or your camera brakes, there is a whole block of camera shops a minute away from Sirkeci train station.

Miscellaneous: If you are going to Istanbul during the summer, bring sunscreen and a hat. A compass might also come in handy.

Miscellaneous: Books:
We took the 'Dorling Kindersely Guide' with us (a good balance of information) and the 'Companion Guide', by John Freely.

There are a number of books by Turkish writers, read before, during and after the trip, and I particularly recommend:

Orhan Pamuk: 'My name is Red'.
I've reviewed it in my bookclub

Perihan Magden : 'The Messenger Boy Murders.'

Yasar Kamal : 'Mehmet, My Hawk'

There are a number of translations of the poems of Nazim Hikmet available.

One VT member who has a really beautiful website with Turkish writing quoted alongside beautiful pictures is Rumisabuncu

Luggage and bags: Preferably buy your luggage in Istanbul. There are many stores offering reasonable prices.

Clothing/Shoes/Weather Gear: Turkey is already a leader country in textiles industry. and buying them in Istanbul will be enjoyable and cheap.

Toiletries and Medical Supplies: Having protective creams is better for windy days near Bosphorus.

Photo Equipment: Istanbul is the good place for buying those items. Especialy Sirkeci is full of stores selling various products of photography.

Camping/Beach/Outdoor Gear: According to changeable spring and autumn weather, raincoats and umbrellas are useful items.

Photo Equipment: If you've run out of film in your camera and need to buy some more, try to buy from photography shops and busy malls. Small shops and groceries also tend to have some, but you can never be sure of how long they have been there, and under what conditions.

Miscellaneous: Between the couple of trips to Istanbul I have made, both were in different seasons, one in summer, and one during the winter. This made all of the difference in the world in regards to clothing! In the summer, it was warm enough to wear short sleeve shirts, even short pants, on most days. But during the winter, it was tremendously cold, it even snowed several days I was here. A thick jacket, long sleeve shirt, and jeans or pants were a must! So depending on the time of year you visit, adjust the wardrobe you bring accordingly.

2 constants that a visitor to Istanbul will want, regardless of the season - confortable walking shoes, and a good camera! I did so much walking here, even with my cushioned athletic shoes, my feet were still sore after each day. Worth every blister I got though! :) And if you have a digital camera, try to have a large-capacity media card or memory stick. So many photo opportunties here it will blow your mind! :)

Clothing/Shoes/Weather Gear: Istanbul weather is little complex , last time i visit it on July and the waether was hot for 5 days suddenly the weather be colder and windy for 4 days and i didn,t realize that i need jacket or some thing to wear it for this , so bring some thing with you to warm you if this happen .

Photo Equipment: it,s better to bring with you your pro. photo equipment cause here it little bit expensive .