The Limited Use Cards
These are non-personalized electronic cards that provide a specific number of rides and can be obtained from any representative or Biletmatik machines. Based on the number of rides, they are offered as BİRgeç (One pass), İKİgeç (Two passes), ÜÇgeç (Three passes), BEŞgeç (Five passes), and ONgeç (Ten passes).
The beşiBiryerde (BEŞgeç) Transit Card and other cards pay the fare on Istanbul's city buses, Metro and tram lines, ferry boats, and funiculars.
They are a contactless, disposable RFID card (that means it has an electronic circuit in it), good for five fares on almost any means of public transport in Istanbul—if the turnstile has been adapted to read the RFID chip, which few have (as of April 2010).
These cards replace the traditional paper single bus tickets, and supplement the Akbil electronic transit pass.
The beşiBiryerde's incredibly clunky name (BESH-ee-beer-yehr-DEH) means "five-in-one" in Turkish: five usages (beş kullanımlık) on one non-refillable card. (For a refillable card, get the Istanbulkart.)
The chip in the beşiBiryerde is supposed to be able to communicate with the turnstile up to a distance of 10 cm (4 inches). The company that developed the card would like to think this allows you to walk through the turnstile with the card in your pocket or purse and not have to pause or stop at the turnstile to register your fare.
Of course, this only works if the turnstile has been adapted to read the card, which few in Istanbul have so far.
In practice, I think few people are exactly the right height for their pockets to pass so close to the card reader. I think you'll probably have to put the card close to the turnstile, either by having it in your purse or wallet and putting that close to the turnstile, or having the card itself out and available and touching it to, or waving it near the turnstile RFID point.
Istanbul City Card
The Istanbul City Card gives visitors unlimited travel on public transportation for 1, 3, 5, 7, or 15 days. It comes with a small guide kit that helps you find your way around. The card’s Istanbul-themed design also makes it a nice souvenir to take home.
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