HOŞ GELDINIZ!

Welcome to Turkey from the Inside, the website of Pat Yale that aims to help you make the most of your time in the country. Come here to find out not just about the most popular places to visit such as Istanbul, Ephesus and Cappadocia, but also about the off-the-beaten-track destinations that you may have to yourself.

Here's why you can trust me to help you.

• I co-wrote the Lonely Planet Turkey guidebook for 10 years which gave me the opportunity to travel all over the country from Edirne to Rize and from Datça to Hakkari.

• Since 2007 I have been writing a travel column for the Sunday’s Zaman newspaper which has let me fill in the off-the-beaten-track gaps such as Arykanda and Yedikilise.

• From 2005 to 2010 I also wrote a travel page for Time Out Istanbul in English that focused on destinations within easy reach of Istanbul such as Enez and Trilye.

• I am the author, with Saffet Emre Tonguç, of the award-winning Istanbul The Ultimate Guide/Istanbul Hakkında Her Şey which describes many of the less well-known corners of the city as well as the highlights.

• I've worked on the Little Hotel Book which let me visit most of Turkey’s boutique hotels, and for Northstar Media, inspecting most of the country’s four and five-star chain hotels.

• I’ve lived in Cappadocia for 12 years and am the author of A Handbook for Living in Turkey.

Here’s how this website works.

For information about a place or a hotel, click on the Places to Go and Places to Stay links. Under Places to Go you will also be able to read my Sunday’s Zaman travel columns. To find out where I am and what I’m doing go to my blog, bloggingaboutturkey. To find out what books to read about Turkey click on Turkish Book Reviews. And to learn what’s new click on my Twitter feed, @patyale. The Photo galleries mainly contain images of things that have interested or amused me on my travels. The Turkey of the Regions section does, however, aim to remind people that this used to be a country of great diversity in architecture, clothes and food.

Here’s what turkeyfromtheinside covers and what it doesn’t.

I’m a historian who loves old buildings and beautiful landscapes. I love visiting ancient ruins, old mosques and castles, and enjoy poking about in markets and down back streets. I always prefer hotels created out of lovely old or interesting buildings and displaying an awareness of their surroundings rather than those in standard high-rises. Likewise, I enjoy eating in interesting buildings wherever possible. If that sounds the sort of thing you enjoy too, then hopefully I can help you.

I’m not really a beach bunny or a great lover of nightclubs. If that’s your scene, then Turkey can more than fulfill your expectations but Turkey from the Inside may not be the right website for you. 

This site will be under development for some time. If you don’t find what you want the first time, please do try again later. Apologies.