# How Much Money to Bring to Turkey for a Week: an Honest Breakdown > How much money to bring to Turkey: three budgets in a table, all-inclusive versus the city, the lira and exchange tips, transfer, tour and hamam costs. - URL: https://langandtrip.com.ua/en/article/skilky-hroshei-turechchyna/ - Language: en - Published: 2026-10-28 - Categories: Travel, Restaurants, Hotels, Tours, Turkey, Food & Drinks --- **How much money to bring to Turkey** for a week: the realistic range runs from 300 to 1500 dollars per person, flights and hotel excluded. The lower end is an all-inclusive resort where your wallet opens only for souvenirs and a couple of tours. The upper end is Istanbul with its restaurants, museums and shopping, a city that drains budgets quietly and efficiently. Here are both scenarios with numbers, plus a section on the lira, because currency exchange is where tourists lose the most. ## Three weekly budgets in actual numbers The figures below are pocket expenses for one person over seven days, with flights and accommodation already paid. Turkish prices move fast because of inflation, so treat the table as a guide and verify current numbers before you travel. ExpenseBudgetMid-rangeComfortFood outside the hotel70-100 $150-250 $350-500 $Transport and transfers20-30 $50-80 $120-200 $Tours and activities50-80 $120-200 $250-400 $Souvenirs, extras, buffer50 $100 $200-400 $**Weekly total****200-260 $****420-630 $****900-1500 $**The budget scenario means all-inclusive or a self-catering apartment, public transport and one or two paid excursions. Mid-range means eating out twice a day, several organised trips and a hamam visit. Comfort means restaurants, private guides, yacht cruises and taxis instead of buses. ## All-inclusive versus the city: two different money games On a package holiday along the Antalya coast you genuinely can squeeze pocket money down to 200-300 dollars a week. The hotel feeds and entertains you; you pay for excursions, spa treatments outside the package and souvenirs. The single trap: everything sold on hotel grounds costs several times more than outside the fence. A bottle of water in the lobby bar and the same bottle in the market across the road can differ in price fivefold. The city, above all Istanbul, follows a different logic. There is no "paid once and done": every day generates spending on food, transport and entry tickets. Lunch at a lokanta, a cheap canteen for locals, runs about 5-8 dollars; dinner in touristy Sultanahmet easily passes 25-30. The Istanbul museum pass pays for itself after three or four sites, and tickets for Hagia Sophia and Topkapi Palace are best bought online through official sites, because the walk-up queue can eat an hour of your day. ### Typical costs everyone forgets to budget - **Airport transfer**: the Havaist or Havabus shuttle from Istanbul's airports costs a few dollars, a taxi to the centre starts around 30-40. In Antalya a group transfer usually comes with the package; a private one adds 25-50 dollars. - **Tours**: street agencies on the coast sell boat trips for 15-25 dollars, while a day trip to Pamukkale or Cappadocia from Antalya costs 60-100 dollars and a full day on the road. A Cappadocia balloon flight is its own line item, from 200 dollars, and the price climbs every season. - **Hamam**: a tourist version at the hotel is 20-30 dollars; historic Istanbul baths such as Cagaloglu or Cemberlitas charge 50-90 dollars for the full foam-and-massage programme. Add a 10-15 percent tip for the attendant, it is expected. - **Tipping in general**: about a tenth of the bill in restaurants, a dollar or two per day for hotel housekeeping. ## The lira, exchange, and why you should carry cash The Turkish lira is a currency with attitude: it has lost value against the dollar many times over in recent years, which is why local prices in lira look terrifying yet convert to something quite moderate. The practical takeaway is simple: bring dollars or euros in cash and exchange in portions as needed. Converting everything on day one makes no sense, since tomorrow's rate may be better. Where to exchange. The best rates are at city exchange offices; in Istanbul that means the Grand Bazaar area and surrounding streets. The worst are at airports and hotels, and the gap is significant. ATMs charge withdrawal fees and often push "conversion to your home currency" at a predatory rate: always choose to withdraw in lira. Visa and Mastercard work in most places, but small cafes, bazaars and dolmus minibuses run on cash. A sensible split is roughly half the budget in cash, the rest on a card as backup. ## How to avoid overpaying - Eat where Turks eat. A lokanta with steam trays serves a full lunch for the price of a hotel coffee. Look for places without an English menu in the window. - Haggle at bazaars without embarrassment. The first price quoted at the Grand Bazaar is an invitation to talk, not a price tag. A third off is a normal outcome of calm bargaining. - Buy tours from street agencies in town rather than the hotel rep: the identical programme costs noticeably more through the hotel. - Get an Istanbulkart for city transport: card fares are much cheaper than single tickets, and top-up machines sit at every station. - Buy water in five-litre bottles at Migros or BIM supermarkets, not in small bottles at kiosks next to the sights. ## The bottom line for a week A couple at an all-inclusive resort will live comfortably on 500-700 dollars for two, and some of it will come home untouched. An independent trip to Istanbul, or a city-plus-sea combination, needs closer to 900-1300 dollars of pocket money for two. Add travel insurance, which costs pennies but is essential, and a contingency reserve of about ten percent. Turkish prices are volatile, so recheck the specifics shortly before departure, and look up the lira rate on the day you exchange, not a week before the flight.