TRAVEL AND LOCAL INFORMATION

airport & transportation

banking & currency

business hours

language

passport & visa

time zone

electricity

shopping

tax refund

 

AIRPORT & TRANSPORTATION

Esenboga International Airport is an airport in Ankara, the capital city of Turkey. The airport is located northeast of Ankara, 28 km from the center.

The Airline Companies operating direct flights to Ankara Esenboga Airport are;

• Ariana Afghan Airlines (Kabul)
• Atlasjet (Ercan, Istanbul-Atatürk, Siirt, Van)
• Austrian Airlines (Vienna)
• Azerbaijan Airlines (Baku)
• British Airways (operated by BMED) (London-Heathrow)
• Germanwings (Cologne/Bonn)
• Iran Air (Tehran-Imam Khomeini)
• Izair (Antalya, Bodrum, Izmir)
• Kibris Türk Hava Yollari (Ercan, Frankfurt)
• Lufthansa (Munich)
• Motor-Sich (Kiev-Borispol, Simferopol)
• Onur Air (Antalya, Diyarbakir, Izmir)
• Pegasus Airlines (Diyarbakir, Ercan, Istanbul-Sabiha Gokcen, Trabzon, Van)
• Turkish Airlines (Adana, Adiyaman, Agri, Amsterdam, Antalya, Brussels, Diyarbakir, Elazig, Ercan, Erzincan, Erzurum, Gaziantep, Istanbul-Atatürk, Istanbul-Sabiha Gökçen, Izmir, Kahramanmaras, Kars, Malatya, Mardin, Munich, Mus, Sanliurfa, Stuttgart, Trabzon, Van, Vienna, Zurich)

If you are arriving with a direct flight to Ankara (either with Turkish Airlines, Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines, German Wings), you will complete both the visa & passport control as well as the customs clearance in Ankara and you will exit from international terminal.

If you are arriving to Ankara via Istanbul (without a stop-over), you will complete your visa and passport control in Istanbul. You will pass through the domestic terminal to get your Ankara flight. Your customs clearance will be done upon your arrival to Ankara and you will exit from Ankara international terminal.

If you are arriving with a stopover in Istanbul, you will complete both the visa & passport control as well as the customs clearance in Istanbul. You will get your Ankara flight from domestic terminal. You will exit from Ankara domestic terminal.

Transportation to the city center is by taxi (around $35 one way, metered) or through the Havas bus line (approximately $9 one way). The ISAAC2007 organization will provide free shuttle services between Ankara Airport & METU Campus - Official Hotels. ASTERYA Staff will meet you at the exit gate of the Domestic or International Terminals and handle your transfer.

BANKING & CURRENCY

The currency of Turkey is New Turkish Lira (YTL) as of 1 January 2005. 1YTL equals to 100 New Kurus (YKR) Banknotes come in 1YTL, 5YTL, 10YTL, 20YTL, 50YTL & 100YTL and coins come in 1, 5YKR, 10YKR, 25YKR and 50YKR and 1YTL.

Currency exchange facilities are available in all banks, hotels and airports. 24 hour cash machines providing banking services by different banks are located at suitable points throughout the 3 terminals of Antalya Airport .

US dollars and Euro's are also widely accepted. Credit cards are accepted at most restaurants and shops, the most widely used being MasterCard & Visa. Please kindly note that American Express, Diners Club and JCB Cards are not commonly accepted.

BUSINESS HOURS

Banks are generally open from 09:30 – 16:00 hours Monday – Friday. General office hours are 09:00 – 17:00 Monday – Friday. Post offices operate within these hours, however stamps often available from hotels.

LANGUAGE

Official language of the Conference is English.

PASSPORT & VISA

Most of the travelers to Turkey require a visa. For most of them visas can be obtained at the port of entry in Turkey or from the Turkish Consulate General or Turkish Diplomatic Missions of their home countries.
Sticker type visas are issued at the port of entry and allow staying in Turkey for up to 90 days.
It is advisable to have a minimum of six months validity on your passport from the date of your entry into Turkey .
For more information, please visit the consular information on web site of Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
http://www.mfa.gov.tr/

TIME ZONE

Local time is equal to GMT + 2 hours. Same time zone all over the country (seven hours ahead of U.S. eastern standard time).

ELECTRICITY

Turkey operates on 220 volts, 50 Hz, with round-prong European-style plugs that fit into recessed wall sockets/points.
Check your appliances before leaving home to see what you'll need to plug in when you travel in Turkey .
Many appliances such as laptop computers and digital cameras with their own power adapters can be plugged into either 120-volt or 220-volt sockets/points and will adapt to the voltage automatically. But you will need a plug adaptor that can fit into the recessed wall socket/point.
Read the technical stuff on your power adapter to see "INPUT: A.C. 100-240V". If it reads that way, it can operate on either 120 or 220 voltage. If it says something like "INPUT: 100-125V", then it can't run on Turkey 's 220 volts and you'll need to bring a voltage converter.

SHOPPING

Shops are usually open between 8:30 - 19:00 and usually closed on Sunday.
Turkey , as a result of its geographical location, is a treasure-house of hand-made products. These range from carpets and kilims, to gold and silver jewelry, ceramics, leather and suede clothing, ornaments fashioned from alabaster, onyx, copper, and meerschaum.
When purchasing carpets, jewellery or leather products, it is advisable to consult your guide or do your shopping at a reputable store rather than in the street from vendors.

TAX REFUND

All goods and services in Turkey are applicable to 18% Value Added Tax.
You can receive a tax refund for the goods you purchased in Turkey . Refunds will be made to travelers who do not reside in Turkey . All goods are included in the refunds with the exclusion of services rendered and the minimum amount of purchase that qualifies for refund is 5YTL.
Retailers that qualify for tax refunds must be "AUTHORIZED FOR REFUND". These retailers must display a permit received from their respective tax office.
The retailer will make four copies of the receipt for your refund, three of which will be received by the purchaser. If photocopies of the receipt are received the retailer must sign and stamp the copies to validate them. If you prefer the refund to be made by check, a Tax-free Shopping Check for the amount to be refunded to the customer must be given along with the receipt.
For the purchaser to benefit from this exemption he must leave the country within three months with the goods purchased showing them to Turkish customs officials along with the appropriate receipts and or check.
There are four ways to receive your refund:
•  If the retailer gives you a check, it can he cashed at a bank in the customs area at the airport.
•  If customer sends a copy of the receipt to the retailer showing that the goods have left the country within one month, the retailer will send a bank transfer to the purchaser's bank or credit card within ten days upon receiving the receipt.
•  If the certified receipt and check are brought back to the retailer on a subsequent visit thin one-month of the date of customs certification, the refund can be made directly to the purchaser.
•  The refund may be made by the organization of those companies that are authorized to make tax refunds