How To Get There
 

Turkish Airlines THY run competitive flights to Istanbul from all over the world, alongside the major national carriers, though in some cases from other continents it may prove worthwhile to take a cheaper flight into Europe and to take a connecting flight from there. From northern Europe, the distance, the steady rise in popularity of Turkey as a tourist destination, and the visa restrictions of Bulgaria and Romania combine to make travel by air often the cheapest, and by far the most convenient, direct route to Istanbul. Those with an eye on their budget should scan newspapers and travel agents for huge discounts and charter flights, especially, but not only, during the tourist seasons, and will probably find the effort very well rewarded. It should be noted that a cheap charter (flight to Greece is a false economy for anything more than a daily trip as the return flight becomes invalid after only a single night's stay in Turkey owing to Greek subsidy regulations). On arrival at lstanbul Ataturk Airport there is a rapidly improving bus service (HAVAS) to take you through Aksaray to Taksim. Also, you may always use your attentive taxi driver, which is not too expensive either.

BY LAND

By comparison, travel by land is strictly for those coming from closer, or with places to go en route. By bus, though, for longer distances it's only the sight rather than the feel of the places that's on offer as the journey can't usually be broken and rejoined, and interminable border crossings and transit visas only reinforce the feelings that your holiday would be best spent in Istanbul itself rather than on the way, there.

BY CAR

By car there are likely to be similar border concerns, and visas should be looked into well in advance of crossing the Balkans. The most attractive route is to park your car on a boat in Venice for a more relaxed Mediterranean voyage to Izmir, where you'll be able to compare the Italian style of driving with the Turkish as you head up the Aegean coast to Istanbul. For entry into Turkey, an international driving licence and insurance are necessary, and for tax purposes the same car must be with you when you leave.

BY RAIL

By rail, too, you can normally arrange to break your journey and explore the lands you are crossing, but with flying a cheaper alternative, then unless you have a specific destination en route, train travel should only be considered by those with a deep fear of both flying and buses. For the incurably romantic with plenty of money and little sense of direction there is always the Orient Express, but unfortunately it no longer goes as far as Istanbul and you'll have to make your own way  from Venice.

The scope of this guide stops at saluting and wishing well the bold and energetic few who are already convinced to undertake the journey by bycycle...

The Orient Express

Inaugurated in 1883 by a French railway company the Orient Express soon became the stuff legends are made of. Originally travelling from Paris through Munich, Vienna and Sophia to the Slrkeci station of Istanbul, passengers could continue the journey, travelling by, boat across the bosphorus to the Haydarpasa Railway Station to join the Taurus Express to Anatolia. Although the route varied throughout the years it ran from Paris to Istanbul, a distance of 3186 kilometers. A monument to the hedonistic days of the late l9th and early 20^th century it was the most luxurious long distance rail journey in the history of travel. Royalty; aristocracy; the rich and the famous travelled regularly on the orient express. Its passenger list read like a volume of "who's who". Gourmet chefs, chandeliers, fully equipped bathrooms, staterooms and dining rooms on par with the Ritz were all part of the train. It takes on a myth like quality in our current times of `functional' travel. Woven into the plot af many books, it is remembered today mainly through Agatha Christie's book (and later a film) "Murder on the Orient Express"

The Orient Express slowly declined in the 1930s with the Simplon Orient Express and the Arlberg Orient Express partially replacing it. ln the 1980s the Orient Express was re-introduced by enterpreuneurs running from Paris to Vienna (1390km) and from  Stuttgart to Prague(1253km). The "Orient Express" surely being a misnomer for these routes.. Unfortunately in the 1990s we are more interested in the speed we can reach our destination rather than the journey itself. The days of opulent train travel are long gone but the mere mention of the name Orient Express still evoke visions of past glories.