I always find traveling magical regardless of its purpose. Especially if I am going overseas. Will you also be going out of your country? Will you be traveling to Turkey? How exciting! You will end up in a new place in a few hours or the next day. You will see a place, which you haven’t seen before; which has a different lifestyle and traditions, which is full of people speaking another language. Ooops, when it comes to the language issue, you might feel uneasy.  No worries. We will go over basic Turkish travel phrases in this article, so you can just concentrate on the experiences you will have and new things you will add to your own world.  Who knows; maybe you will have new connections. I wish you a nice trip where you will have new, good memories you can look back at years later with a big smile.

Table of Contents

1. Basic Turkish Travel Phrases
2. Transportation
3. Shopping
4. Hotels
5. Restaurants
6. Asking for and giving directions
7. In case of an emergency
8. Phrases to overcome language barriers
9. Learn More with TurkishClass101!

1. Basic Turkish Travel Phrases

1 – Greetings

Whether you are stepping into a meeting room, a hotel or a shop, or a school, a warm and sincere greeting will open the doors for you! It will help you make a good first impression and communicate effectively.

Here are some greeting words in Turkish you can use to build connection with Turkish people:

Turkish	English
Merhaba	“Hello”
Selam	“Hi”
İyi günler	“Good day”
Günaydın	“Good morning”
Tünaydın	“Good afternoon”
İyi akşamlar	“Good evening”
İyi geceler	“Good night”
Baybay	“Bye bye”
Hoşçakalın	“Good-bye”

Make sure to check this link to learn more greeting words in Turkish. You can also refer to our article if you’d like to know how you can introduce yourself in Turkish.

2 – Courtesy phrases

Kind and good words always impress people. Someone asking for help or asking a question in a kind way usually gets an answer also in a kind way. Therefore, it’s a good idea to learn these useful Turkish courtesy phrases while you are traveling.

Turkish	English
Teşekkür ederim.	“Thank you.”
Teşekkürler.	“Thanks.”
Bir şey değil. / Rica ederim.	“You’re welcome.”
Lütfen.	“Please.”
Problem/sorun değil.	“No problem.”
Afedersiniz.	“Excuse me.”
Üzgünüm.	“I’m sorry.”

3 – Likes/Dislikes

If you are in Turkey traveling, you might also need to express your likes and dislikes.

Severim/sevmem // Beğenirim/beğenmem – “I like/I don’t like”

 Let’s see how we can use these Turkish words in sentences:

	Turkish	English
1	Hayvanları çok severim.	“I like animals a lot.”
2	Acı sosları hiç sevmem.	“I don’t like hot sauces at all.”
3	Türkçe öğrenmeyi seviyorum.	“I like learning Turkish.”
4	Araba kullanmayı sevmiyorum.	“I don’t like driving.”
5	O kravatı beğenmedim.	“I didn’t like that tie.”

2. Transportation

If you are traveling in Turkey, you will need different means of transport to get around. You might also need other information such as timetables, ticket, station, drop off point information etc.

Now, let’s take a look at some Turkish travel phrases that cover transportation:

1 – How to get to your destination

In order to get to your destination, you should know the vehicle names in Turkish.

Here they are:

Turkish	English
Araba	“Car”
Otobüs	“Bus”
Uçak	“Plane”
Taksi/taxi	“Taxi”
Tren	“Train”
Metro	“Subway”
Tramvay	“Tram”

2 – What is your destination?

Below are some phrases you can use to talk or inquire about your destination:

Turkish	English
Havaalanına gitmek istiyorum.	“I’d like to go to the airport.”
Otobüs durağı nerede?	“Where is the bus stop?”
Bana bir taksi çağırabilir misiniz?	“Could you call a taxi for me?”
En yakın metro/tren istasyonu nerede?	“Where is the closest subway/train station?”
Buradan Taksim’e tramvay ile gidebilir miyim?	“Can I go to Taksim by tram from here?”

3 – How to buy a ticket?

You should be able to ask the right questions to get a ticket. Let’s take a look at the following common Turkish phrases:

Turkish	English
Gidiş bileti	“One way ticket”
Gidiş dönüş bileti	“Round trip ticket”
Nereden bilet alabilirim?	“Where can I buy a ticket?”
İzmir uçağı saati kaçta?	“What time is the flight to Izmir?”
İstanbul’a bilet ne kadar?	“How much is the ticket to Istanbul?”

4 – Other information

A few different transport related situations are covered above. Now, let’s take a look at a few more phrases you might require as you are moving around:

Turkish	English
İyi yolculuklar!	“Have a good trip!”
Bu otobüs Optimum alışveriş merkezinden geçer mi?	“Does this bus pass by the Optimum mall?”
İzmir İstanbul arası otobüsle kaç saat sürer?	“How long does it take from Izmir to Istanbul by bus?”
Fenerbahçe’ye gitmek için hangi otobüse binmeliyim?	“Which bus should I take to go to Fenerbahçe?”

3. Shopping

If you are traveling, knowing some shopping vocabulary will be definitely useful. If you are going to a supermarket for a bottle of water, or to a mall to buy a raincoat, or to a shop for a souvenir, or to a drugstore for a painkiller, the following information will be handy for sure:

Turkish	English
Bu kaç beden?	“What size is this?”
Bu ne kadar?	“How much is this?”
Bunu almak istiyorum.	“I’d like to buy this.”
Bana biraz indirim yapar mısınız?	“Can you give me a discount?”
Kredi kartı ile ödeyebilir miyim?	“Can I pay by credit card?”

It’s really a good idea to know numbers in Turkish as well, if you are shopping. Make sure to read our article about numbers.

4. Hotels

Accommodation is another important factor when you are traveling. In Turkey, you can find hotels with different star ratings (from one to seven stars), pensions, vacation rentals etc. based on your budget. The following Turkish phrases for travelers relevant to accommodation will give you a relief when trying to find a place to stay.

Turkish	English
Boş odanız var mı?	“Do you have an available room?”
Geceliği ne kadar?	“How much is it per night?”
Kahvaltı dahil mi?	“Is breakfast included?”
Kahvaltı saat kaçta?	“At what time is breakfast?”
Odayı kaçta boşaltmam gerekiyor?	“What time do I have to leave the room?”

5. Restaurants

Oh, no, if you are in Turkey, you can’t just stay in a hotel room and order room service. There are so many different tastes outside the hotel. You should get out of the hotel and discover Turkish food, absolutely new tastes!

If you have not heard about Turkish cuisine, yet, make sure to read our article before you decide on a menu.

Get ready for your meal with the help of the following phrases:

Turkish	English
Menüyü alabilir miyim?	“May I have the menu?”
Ne önerirsiniz?	“What would you recommend?”
Ben vejeteryanım.	“I’m a vegetarian.”
Süte alerjim var.	“I’m allergic to milk.”
Hesap lütfen!	“Check, please!”

6. Asking for and giving directions

Asking directions is an inevitable part of a trip. You are in a new place and don’t know your way around. Of course, there will be times you will need directions.

Here are how you can ask where you want to go and some answers that will let you know the directions to your destination:

Turkish	English
Taksim’e gitmek istiyorum.	“I’d like to go to Taksim.”
Taksim’e nasıl gidebilirim?	“How can I go to Taksim?”
Afedersiniz, kütüphane nerede?	“Excuse me, where is the library?”
300 metre ileride sağda.	“It’s 300 meters ahead on the right.”
Düz gidin sağdan 2. sokağa dönün.	“Go straight, turn right onto 2nd street.”
Köşeden sola dönün, 4. bina.	“Turn left at the corner, it’s the 4th building.”

7. In case of an emergency

This is an important topic you should make a note of. None of us know what’s going to happen in the next second. We can find ourselves in a dangerous situation all of a sudden and need help. I hope you will never need to use the following, but God forbids, if any emergency comes up, you can refer to the indicated phrases:

Turkish	English
Bana yardım edin lütfen!	“Help me please!”
Polisi arayın lütfen.	“Please call the police.”
Ambulans çağırın.	“Call an ambulance.”
Ben kayboldum. Bana yardım edebilir misiniz?	“I’m lost. Can you help me?”
Hastane nerede?	“Where is the hospital?”
Pasaportumu/cüzdanımı kaybettim. Yardıma ihtiyacım var.	“I lost my passport/wallet. I need help.”

He needs help!

8. Phrases to overcome language barriers

If you are traveling to/within a foreign country, even if you have a dictionary or if you have learnt some phrases in that language, it’s very possible that there will be times when you will have difficulty expressing yourself or understanding the native speaker. Here are some Turkish phrases for tourists that can help you overcome the language barriers:

Turkish	English
Anlamadım.	“I didn’t understand.”
İngilizce konuşuyor musunuz?	“Do you speak English?”
Yavaş konuşabilir misiniz lütfen?	“Can you speak slowly please?”
Buraya yazabilir misiniz?	“Can you write it here?”
Türkçe de “___” nasıl diyorsunuz?	“How do you say ‘___’ in Turkish?”

9. Learn More with TurkishClass101!

In this article, you learned quite a number of must-know Turkish travel words and phrases. However, there are a lot more Turkish phrases for travel!

Therefore, visit TurkishClass101.com, which has numerous audio recordings, tons of vocabulary lists and free resources including the dictionary you can refer to, in order to learn basic Turkish and to get a better grasp of the culture.

Don’t forget that there is also MyTeacher, which is the premium service of TurkishClass101 that you can use to practice with a private teacher.

Do you know what is also good about it? You can download the app for free and use it wherever you are.

Last but not the least; please continue to provide us feedback about all the resources provided at TurkishClass101!