Turkey On A Rope

Blue Mosque

Our Turkey trip is a prime example of the Traveler On a Rope philosophy.  The traveler on a rope expects value, but with a budget, and expectations, that go beyond a shoe string.

The impetus for the trip was a Gate1 heavily discounted offer including airfare and 4 nights in a 4 star Istanbul hotel, upgradeable to a 5 star property.  As with most such offers, multiple dates were available.  Usually you can pick a start date, and then a later return date, based on other tours.  We elected a February 27 start date, but with a March 19 return.  This placed us squarely in off season, but with a good likelihood of reasonable weather.

The traveler on a rope always travels in shoulder or off season.  Ephesus with 100 people spread along the grounds evokes the glory of the Roman Empire.  With 5,000 people, it simulates the hell of Los Angeles rush hour.

Although crowd avoidance is the primary lure of off season, substantial savings is a close second.  Hotels are less expensive, and even the best reviewed, have availability.  When we were shopping for a rug is Selcuk, the owner let us know that the rug we fancied would have the fancy price of 2500 Turkish Lira in summer (just under 500 dollars), before offering the winter price of 1200.  In summer further bargaining would have been hard, with multiple tourists seeking his attention.  In an empty store I negotiated down to 600 lira.

The package, was independent travel only including the hotel and airfare.  One half day walking tour was included free, with others offered for a fee.  We slept in and ignored the free tour, and all others.

The traveler on a rope sets priorities.  Moving at your own pace is one of them.  More to come, but with the current crisis, I wanted to reach back and post from a time of mobility.

For those interested in books in the traveler on a rope series, please check out your favorite source for online books.  The most recent is 4 AMERICANS IN CUBA, A TRAVELER ON A ROPE GUIDEBOOK.  The SOUTHEAST ASIA ON A ROPE  series includes a guide to Thailand and Laos, a book on Cambodia and Myanmar, as well as a shorter book on Bangkok and Chiang Mai.  All are under my name, Larry Stein.