Reducing the Cost of Traveling to Turkey by Renting a Car

Managing expenses in travel is always an important issue for every traveler, especially in leisure trips and vacations in a country like Turkey. For this purpose, there are various solutions, one of the most common ones in the case of reducing the cost of travel in Turkey is renting a car; this solution also provides easy conditions for traveling to different places.

A Memorable Trip to Turkey

Turkey is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world, and every year, many tourists travel to this country to spend vacations, visit historical and natural attractions, and experience shopping in its old bazaars and modern shopping centers. In such a situation, travelers try to reduce their expenses in different ways in order to enjoy their trip more in order to have more budget and opportunity for a memorable trip.

The key point in this regard is maintaining the quality of the trip without having to shorten its duration or eliminate any options from your preferred plan; in this regard, actions such as renting a car in Turkey can greatly reduce your transportation costs and make it easier for you to reach the places you want.

How to Access or Travel to Different Parts of the City in Turkey

One of the most important factors of development and tourism in a country is public transportation services so that travelers can go easily and without problems, for example, to the most popular historical areas of Izmir. In this regard, Turkey's urban public transportation includes: buses, minibuses, taxis, metros, trams, and ferries, and its suburban transportation mainly includes: trains, buses, planes and ships.

This transportation network, which is generally developed and up-to-date, has its own advantages and disadvantages for the transportation of passengers to all parts of Turkey and different regions of each city. Based on this, one of the advantages of Turkey's transportation system is its variety. However, some of the main disadvantages for passengers include the following, which, for example, may make access to the historical markets of Turkey a bit challenging:

·         The high fares of taxis

·         Limited hours of service

·         Limitation in covering all regions

·         need to wait for the bus and subway to arrive at the stations

·         Crowds in buses and subways

·         Travelers' unfamiliarity with bus and metro routes and stations

·         Not having a "Ticket Card" specified for each city to ride the bus and subway

In such a situation, one of the most common methods for easy transportation in each of the different cities of Turkey and different regions of this beautiful country is to rent a car in Turkey at the best price from reputable companies; in this regard, the following reasons can be mentioned among the main reasons for justifying this action:

1.       The cost of renting a car for a full day to visit several different locations is equivalent to the fare for a single trip from Sabiha Airport to Taksim Square

2.       Be able to use routing applications to find the best and least crowded route to the desired locations

3.       Traveling to desired places without time restrictions

4.       Reduce transportation costs to a great extent

Note: For example, you can rent a car in Istanbul after booking a flight ticket to Istanbul and confirming your travel time; it should be noted that one of the necessary documents for this purpose in some car rental companies is to have a return plane ticket (such cases are among the important notes before the flight).

Benefits of Renting a Car in Turkey

First of all, it should be mentioned that the Turkish traffic laws have been revised and updated in recent years according to the European Union laws in this regard, and this has led to an increase in the quality of driving and safety in its various routes; at the same time, the use of new technologies, the increase of police surveillance on all routes within and outside the city, as well as the improvement of the quality and conditions of the streets and roads have made driving in Turkey easier (for this reason, it is better to check the rules of driving a rental car in Turkey, read the necessary information).

Other reasons related to benefits of renting a car in Turkey include reducing travel costs (especially if the parking lot of the car rental company is at the airport due to tax exemption); also, saving time and having greater flexibility in choosing the timing of your travel to one or multiple desired locations are other benefits of such an action, particularly when renting a car in Istanbul and traveling to this historic city.

Note: If you have traveled to Turkey as a group with your family members or friends, instead of renting two or more cars, you can rent a van that can accommodate up to 9 people. But if you come to Turkey by tours, you probably won't need to do this.

Ways to Reduce Travel Costs in Turkey

If you are planning to spend a vacation and visit Turkey's tourist attractions in spring or other seasons, you can reduce your expenses by using some strategies without reducing the quality of your trip. For this purpose, you must first consider a logical and flexible plan, then buy your flight ticket, book hotels in Turkey, and rent a car from a reputable travel agency.

Among the other factors that can reduce the cost of your trip is the choice of accommodation, with a lower price but with services such as 5-star hotels and complete equipment. Accordingly, renting a the furnished house in Turkey is one of the types of accommodation popular with travelers, and it is an option that has gained the popularity of many people in recent years. These residences, which have more privacy and private space compared to all types of hotels, have a big living room, fully equipped kitchen, private yard and, swimming pool, etc.

Therefore, if you rent a suite in Antalya, for example, due to the features mentioned in such accommodations, your costs will be reduced to a great extent. At the same time, regular cleaning by experienced staff, just like in hotels, on specified days and times, as well as any necessary repairs, are other features of renting such accommodations.

On the other hand, since only 5-star hotels offer free breakfast, and you would need to go to the hotel restaurant or other eateries in the city to have other meals, your expenses can increase. However, because all furnished accommodations come with fully equipped kitchens, you can buy all the necessary ingredients at a lower cost than dining out and cooking your favorite meals at your accommodation (e.g., renting a furnished house in Trabzon).

General Conditions for Renting a Car in Turkey

As previously mentioned, due to the costs of rental cars in Turkey and the cost-effectiveness of such actions, the conditions and regulations for renting a car in this country can be divided into 2 categories: first, the common conditions for all car rental companies in Turkey, and second, the specific regulations for each company. Therefore, the general conditions for renting a car in Turkey for travelers can be summarized as follows:

·         A valid international driving license and a driving license issued by your home country

·         A valid passport

·         A valid email address

Other conditions and regulations that may vary by rental company, such as GoToSafar (for example, regarding applicants residing in Turkey), include:

·         Minimum age of 23 for renting common cars and 28 for luxury cars

·         A valid driving license issued by your home country as well as a Turkish one (it must be at least 2 years since it was issued)

·         A residence permit or "Kimlik" card with a validity of at least 6 months

Applicants should also note that if they expect someone other than the first driver to drive the car, the name of this person must be included as a "Secondary Driver" in the contract. Failure to address such matters or driving drunk, using a rental car for earning money (such as carrying passengers), or carrying heavy items are considered violations and will incur heavy fines according to traffic laws of Turkey.

Important Note 1: Given the strictness of Turkish traffic police regarding violations, it is advisable to read information about the fines for driving offenses in Turkey in advance. Additionally, you must carry all the mentioned documents along with the rental car contract while driving in Turkey.

Translated by: Taimaz Golzar