Destinations

On a holiday of two weeks or less, at most two cities work. A third fits on paper but in practice costs two more days on the road and at the airport — a one-hour domestic flight takes five to six hours door to door.

The six cities produce three different shapes of day, and that is what really decides the choice.

1. 1

   Coastal cities — Antalya, Bodrum

   The day begins at the hotel and usually ends there: pool or sea in the morning, waiting out the afternoon heat, a short outing in the evening. There are things to see, of course — ancient cities around Antalya, coves around Bodrum — but they take a day or two of the week, not every day. It works for families with young children; someone expecting a busy programme can be bored by the third day.

2. 2

   A city programme — Istanbul, Bursa

   The opposite holds: the hotel is only where you sleep. The day is spent leaving in the morning and coming back at night, most of it on your feet, and it is tiring. In return, every day shows you something different.

3. 3

   Highland and lake — Trabzon, Sapanca

   A large part of the day is spent in the car. Reaching Uzungöl, Ayder or the villages around Sapanca takes hours in itself; in return you leave the heat behind completely. Choosing this side with a group that cannot handle long drives is the decision people regret most.

On a first visit the answer almost always starts with Istanbul, and that is not a matter of taste: most scheduled flights land here, and everything people picture when they think of Türkiye — Hagia Sophia, Sultanahmet, the Grand Bazaar, the Bosphorus — sits in one city, most of it within walking distance. Three full days cover most of it; four days keep the pace unhurried.