Costs of Budget Travel in Turkey in 2020 – pt 2: High Season

Back in May I wrote a very thorough & detailed article about the costs of budget travel in Turkey in 2020. At that point I’d been traveling around the country for over three months, so the article is a detailed summary of my initial three months here.

In it I wrote in-depth about costs of accommodation, eating, transportation and entertainment/activities. I also explained rather thoroughly about the gradually changing exchange rate between $US and Turkish lira. The exchange rate definitely has a noticeably affect on budget travel costs here.

As a quick summary, during Feb, March and April, my total monthly expenses were $532, $521 and $444, respectively. That makes Turkey a very affordable travel destination for just about any budget traveler.

To date (now in August / three months later), almost everything I explained in that article still holds true during the high summer tourist season in Turkey. In particular, I’ve found that the cost of meals, public transportation and entry fees/activities in Turkey remain the same year round and from place to place.

So I urge anyone interested in traveling on a budget in Turkey to read my first article as a supplement to this one. In this post, I don’t repeat the details of the costs of eating, transportation or entry fees/activities.

In fact, the only costs that have changed significantly since I wrote in May are the costs of accommodation around the country during the June-August high tourist season. And that constitutes the only real budget difference between low and high season travel in Turkey, as far as I’ve seen during six months here.

Back in 2019, long before I arrived in Turkey, I’d already researched the prices of accommodations at various places around the country. I had a good understanding of prices during Feb-April at the places I was planning to visit. That included Istanbul, Cappadocia, Konya and several locations along the Mediterranean coast: Antalya, Kas, Fetiye, Kabak Bay, Marmaris and Bodrum.

Since then I’ve seen accommodation prices increase greatly in these areas, first in June then again in July and August.

During Feb – April, and even through May, it was fairly easy to find private rooms in small hotels and/or AirBnBs for 50-60 lira / $7-10 US in most places around the country, including in most places along the coast. In a few of the most expensive coastal cities like Marmaris and Bodrum, I could find at least one place for 70 or 80 lira per night.

In June, prices in those same destinations along the coast started rising. By early June I couldn’t find any private room for less than 100 lira. In fact, to stick to my nightly accommodation budget of 50-60 lira, the only thing I could do was go camping! Lol

my camp at a campground in Kas

That was fine since I also love camping. So in early June I promptly bought myself a nice little tent for 130 lira / $23 US and set out traveling along the coast from Antalya, staying at various campgrounds. In that way I was able to keep my June expenses the same as Feb. through April. 

But in June I could also still find one or two private rooms in Fetiye, Marmaris & Bodrum, either on AirBnB or by Google map search for cheap hotels, for about 70-90 lira per night.

However, in July and August that all changed quickly. Suddenly, the lowest private room rates that I could find searching for cheap hotels online in most places were 100-120 lira / about $14.25-$17.50 per night (And notice that is double my budget).

But those were pretty hard to come by. Most accommodations were well above 120 lira per night, even for one person, in most destinations in Turkey. And in many places, the current rates in mid August are 150-250 lira or even above 300 lira / per night.

Now in the scheme of private budget rooms around the world, those lower prices of 100-120 lira per night are pretty decent rates. Certainly not outrageous. And I’ve at times regularly paid $12-14 US for rooms – or even dorm beds – in a few countries like Costa Rica and Panama.

But those prices are not sustainable for me Long-term as a full-time budget traveler. And 100-120 lira is actually double the price I paid in Turkey between February through May, anywhere in the country. So that constitutes a huge difference in price.

Taken over an entire month, paying 100-120 lira per night would cost $435-525 US, just for the accommodation….which is equal to my entire monthly budget during Feb-April (and May as well)!

During those months I was paying a total of about $200 US per month on accommodation. Big difference in budget!

As a result of the accommodation price increases in July and August, my total monthly expenses have gone up considerably.

This holds true even though I have mostly lucked out paying 70-75 lira per night. I only had to pay 100 lira per night for five nights in Bodrum when I visited that overly-developed-tourist trap on a hotel review assignment.

To my great luck, I arrived in Fetiye in late June, at which time I managed to find a great private room in a hotel/apartment for just 70 lira per night. That’s about $10.25 per night / $310 US per month.

As an ongoing tenant, I’ve been able to keep this rate through all of July and August, which is actually well below the usual asking price for rooms around Fetiye during these months.

If I were paying the usual 100-120 lira per night, July’s expenses would have been considerably higher.

Also, as I noted above, my food costs have remained consistent for more than six months here in Turkey at $6.50-7 US per day / aka $195-210 US per month. That has been regardless of my location in Turkey or whether it’s low or high season.

Following are my expenses for July:

Total July Expenses = $679.05 US

Daily Expense = $21.90

Total Accommodation Expense = $339.45

Daily Room Average = $10.95

Total Food Expense = $220.41

Daily Food Average = $7.11

Other misc. expenses = $119.19

notes:

Overall expenses

My ongoing attempted maximum monthly budget as I travel the world is $600 US, inclusive, which is $20 US per day.

In most countries, I’m able to stick to this budget and often well below that. As I noted above, during my first three months in Turkey (low season), my monthly budget was well below $600 US.

However, in July I went well over my maximum daily and monthly budget. A small part of that was due to unexpectedly having to buy a lot of personal supplies in the same month. If not for that, my expenses would have been somewhat lower.

Miscellaneous Expenses

My other costs included transportation, a minimum of sightseeing/entry fees, twice monthly bags of Starbucks coffee and various personal items that I had to replace. Unfortunately, as I noted above, many of my important daily items needed to be replaced in July. They included my umbrella, running shoes, and various toiletries. It all adds up!

As for entertainment & activities…

During roughly six weeks here in Fetiye, I have not participated in any outdoor tours, boat trips or the region’s famed parasailing flights, mainly because of the Covid-19 pandemic. I’m playing it safe by staying away from groups, tours, tourist crowds, bars, restaurants and any places with people.

As a result, I have had very minimal entertainment/activity/entry fee expenses. Aside from my side trip to Bodrum for hotel review work, my only expenses have been for local & regional buses to visit various beaches and outdoor attractions.

Luckily, buses are very cheap in Turkey. Buses within the city cost 3 lira / $0.50 US per ride, so about $1 US round trip. Regional buses in Fetiye to sites outside the city cost about 6-7 lira each way / $1 US or $2 US round trip.

I also paid a few minimal entry fees to nature parks, usually about 9 lira / $1.30 US.

Summary

As it turns out, the cost of budget travel in Turkey varies greatly, depending on which months you visit. The main difference in expense between low season and high season is in changing accommodation prices. On the other hand, the costs of eating, transportation, activities/entertainment and entry fees all remain consistent throughout the year.

During Turkey’s low season months of February through May, I was able to comfortably live & travel on about $520-540 US per month. But in July, my monthly costs were $679 US.

As for accommodation – During low season months, I usually paid 50-60 lira per night for private rooms in various places around the country.

In summer months, July and August, I have been extremely lucky to find accommodation for about 70 lira per night. However, the general going rate is 100-120 lira or more in most places around the country. Basically, accommodation rates double during the high tourist season.

I hope this report of my expenses in Turkey helps other budget travelers interested in exploring this large, varied gorgeous country. Turkey is definitely one of my favorite countries in the world and I highly recommend it to other travelers, especially those into nature, outdoor activities, intriguing culture and/or historic/archaeological sites.

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You might also like:

Costs of Buget Travel in Turkey in 2020

10 Free Things to do in Istanbul

10 Free Things to do in Antalya

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