My month-by-month account of weather, holidays, festivals, special events, and the best places to be when you travel in Turkey. (Or see my short list of national holidays.)
JANUARY
It’s rainy and cold everywhere. Eastern Turkey is in the icy grip of winter; Ankara and the rest of Central Anatolia may be covered in snow. More…
FEBRUARY
Rainy, chilly and cheerless, but there’s skiing on Mount Uludağ near Bursa, Mount Erciyes near Kayseri, and Palandöken near Erzurum. More…
MARCH
Still rainy many days in much of the country, perhaps with some snow, though there may be some good periods on the south Aegean and Mediterranean coasts. More…
APRIL
April can be delightful, but the farmers depend on it for rain, and in the mountainous East it’s still cold. Foreign tourists flock to the cities. More…
MAY
May usually brings perfect weather throughout the country, with long sunny days and little chance of rain. Though May is the perfect time to take a Blue Voyage yacht cruise or visit the torrid Southeast, it’s still chilly in the central-east and northeast. This is one of the busiest months for individual tourists wanting boutique hotels. More…
JUNE
The weather is perfect throughout the country, with long days, but it gets hot as June progresses. There is little rain except along the Black Sea coast. Good time to be on a Blue Voyage yacht cruise. More…
JULY
The weather is hot, the sky is blue, the sea is warm, and the cities empty out to the beaches, which are crowded with vacationers both Turkish and foreign, including Blue Voyage yacht cruises, which are most expensive now. Life in the cities is less crowded. More…
AUGUST
It’s hot and sunny all month, and very crowded at the beach resorts. This is the best time to be in Eastern Turkey, when the weather is fine and crowds are smaller than along the western beaches; but the Southeast is blazing hot: avoid going there now if you can. More…
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SEPTEMBER
The weather is still hot and fine, moderating a bit towards the end of the month, and Blue Voyage yacht cruises come down in price. Swimming is still good and the crowds are still in evidence. Boutique hotels begin to fill up again. More…
OCTOBER
The month begins with very good weather, but the rains usually begin sometime in mid- or late October. There may also be freak snowstorms in Central Anatolia. Even so, individual travelers throng the cities. More…
NOVEMBER
The weather can be pleasant, with cool to warm days and chilly nights, but you play cat and mouse with the rain. Swimming may still be possible and pleasant along the Mediterranean coast—or not (especially later in the month). If your luck holds, you can have a marvellous late-year beach vacation. More…
DECEMBER
The weather is chilly throughout the country, though milder along the Mediterranean coast. You must expect some rain, perhaps heavy. More…
—by Tom Brosnahan
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