Five Ways to Get a Good Internet Connection When Visiting Turkey As a Tourist

Would you really want to miss the excellent Mediterranean beaches, ancient history, or delicious sweet treats of Turkey without the ability to go online and share your travel experiences with your friends and family? Probably not. If staying connected to the internet while on the go is important to you, then you'll need to find ways to get a secure, speedy, and affordable connection as quickly and easily as possible after arriving on your Turkish vacation.

Fortunately for you, as we'll see in this short guide, there are a few ways you can get access to a reliable internet connection in Turkey without much of a hassle or without breaking the bank account. Stay tuned as we go through the five most popular options below.

Option 1: eSIM

• What you need: A smartphone of a newer model (i.e., since 2019 - see a complete list of compatible devices here)
• Avg. cost per gigabyte: ±$1.50 in Turkey
• Where to get it: Online in just a few taps (start here with Airalo)
• Best for: Pretty much everyone

The first (and, in most cases, the best) option for getting connected in Turkey is to purchase an eSIM before your trip. These SIMs work exactly like regular physical SIM cards, but instead of inserting a plastic microchip, you download SIM software onto your phone or tablet, which your device can then read just like usual.

Using an eSIM in Turkey is simple, affordable, and effective. All you need to do is find a trustworthy eSIM provider online (we particularly like Airalo and Holafly - more on that in a moment), visit their website, choose Turkey as your destination, choose your data bundle, and then pay, download, and follow the instructions to install your eSIM card. The entire process takes just a few minutes, and you can purchase the SIM at home before leaving and then connect to mobile data immediately after touching down in Turkey! Moreover, since your eSIM will effectively be a local Turkish one, you can connect directly to local network carriers like Turkcell, Vodafone, or Turk Telecom and dodge high roaming charges from your home carrier altogether.

When it comes to the cost per gigabyte, buying an eSIM is usually the same price as, or slightly more expensive than, buying a local physical Turkish SIM after arrival. Taking Airalo as an example, a typical data bundle will cost you just from $4.50 to $26 once off depending on how many gigabytes you choose to buy. You can easily top this up via the Airalo app if you start running low. This lets you save time and hassle compared to buying a physical SIM, where you'd usually need to stand in line at the counter to buy or top up your card or package. Take a look at our Airalo review to learn more.

On the other hand, if you're looking for an unlimited data bundle, then we recommend Holafly, which generally charges between $1.50 and $6.00 per day for unlimited data in Turkey, depending on how many days you select (the more days, the cheaper the cost per day). Like Airalo, Holafly eSIMs connect through local networks and give you a speedy and secure connection, no matter where you are in Turkey. To find out more about Holafly, read our comprehensive review.

You can compare eSIM providers for different types of travelers by taking a look at our YouTube comparison below:

Option 2: Local SIM Card

• What you need: Any mobile phone; a physical Turkish SIM card.
• Avg. cost per gigabyte: ±$0.50-$1.50, depending on the package.
• Where to get it: Kiosks, convenience stores, and cellphone shops in international airports, tourist centres, and commercial districts.
• Best for: Getting connected if you have a non-eSIM-compatible smartphone.

The next-best option for getting a reliable and affordable internet connection in Turkey is to head to a cellphone shop after arrival and purchase a physical SIM card and an accompanying data bundle.

In Turkey, there are many different kinds of retailers that sell SIM cards, including regular cell phone stores, kiosks, and certain convenience stores. Look out for the local term cep telefonu or for photos of smartphones or local carrier logos on shop windows or storefronts. SIM cards are available at all major international airports in Turkey such as Istanbul, Antalya, Ankara, or Izmir, but in case you miss the chance at the airport, you'll also frequently find SIM cards being sold in city centres, tourist hotspots, malls, or business districts in pretty much all towns and cities around the country.

Buying a local SIM card is generally the cheapest way to connect reliably to the internet as a tourist in Turkey, although it does have some drawbacks. These include the fact that you'll need to visit a shop in person after arriving, which can sometimes take a little while if there are queues. Another potential con (although it's less common these days) is the possibility of being ripped off or scammed altogether. Try to seek out reputable outlets that are affiliated directly with local network carriers to avoid this risk. Buying a SIM card at the airport is almost always completely safe in this respect.

In general, we recommend buying a physical SIM if you don't mind the in-person queuing or if your smartphone isn't an eSIM-compatible model. In pretty much all other cases, we think eSIMs offer a better deal than physical SIMs due to their better convenience and comparable affordability.

Option 3: Roaming

• What you need: Any smartphone with roaming capabilities.
• Avg. cost per gigabyte: At least $15.00, but often much higher.
• Where to get it: Turn on 'Roaming' on your smartphone settings.
• Best for: Accessing the internet in emergencies when there's no other option available.

In the world of telecoms, 'roaming' refers to connecting your smartphone to the networks of other mobile carriers outside your home networks. You can typically use roaming simply by opening 'Settings' then 'Mobile' or 'Mobile Data' on your Apple device, or 'Connections' then 'Mobile networks' on your Android device. This makes it an easy and convenient option to tap into - but as we'll see, it's usually an expensive one.

Roaming in Turkey works when your home carrier has an agreement with a local Turkish carrier like Turkcell, Vodafone, or Turk Telecom. These agreements normally lead to you coming in short: they can often cost you anywhere between $0.50 and $2.50 per megabyte (that's right, per megabyte, not per gigabyte), which can lead to a staggeringly large bill at the end of the month if you're unlucky enough to browse for long in Turkey with your roaming turned on unwittingly.

On the other hand, it's also worth noting that you might not have the option to roam at all if your home carrier doesn't have agreements with any of the local carriers. It all depends on how well-connected your home carrier is. If you're from the USA and you have a contract with Verizon, AT&T, or T-Mobile, then roaming will be possible (albeit pricey) in Turkey. On the other hand, if you're with a smaller carrier or from a smaller country, it's possible you won't have this option at all in Turkey.

Although roaming isn't always as expensive on a per-gigabyte basis as what we laid out above, it's almost always far pricier than using a SIM card (whether that be an eSIM or a microchip SIM). What's more, these costs are seldom transparent, and most people only find out how much they've racked up in roaming charges once they receive their bill at the end of the month. It's for this reason that we recommend against roaming in Turkey, or anywhere else for that matter, unless you're in an emergency and need rapid web access or unless you otherwise don't mind the high costs.

Option 4: Portable WiFi Hotspots

yoppy (CC BY 2.0 DEED)

• What you need: A smartphone or laptop; a wireless modem.
• Avg. cost: ±$150.00 to purchase once-off.
• Where to get it: Online (e.g. Amazon) or mobile and cellphone stores in international airports and tourist centres.
• Best for: Longer visits to Turkey (i.e., longer than 90 days)

Unlike SIM cards, which connect you to the internet via mobile data, pocket routers or modems (also known as portable WiFi hotspots) connect you to the internet via WiFi. Many people don't know that pocket modems can be a viable option for their travels abroad, but in some cases, they're invaluable! You can find them in many airport cellular stores, and although they're not nearly as ubiquitous as SIM cards, they're quite easy to come upon. You can even order one ahead of your trip, though it's also possible to buy one in-country after you've arrived in Turkey.

Top pocket modem brands to look out for include RoamWiFi, Orbic, and Netgear, but big carriers like T-Mobile and Verizon in the US offer their own products, too. Here's how they generally work:

1. Purchase a portable WiFi router (they normally cost $100 to $400),
2. Charge and turn on the router,
3. Configure the WiFi or router settings, if desired,
4. Connect your device to the new Wi-Fi network.

Pocket modems and portable WiFi hotspot devices generally work by either being completely geared to international use (especially if you buy one at the airport) or combining domestic and international use. For example, RoamWiFi's popular 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot gives you an out-of-the-box 10 GB to use domestically in the US and another 1 GB to use in 160 countries, including Turkey. Other deals offer similar benefits, so we recommend shopping around or just asking at the airport when you arrive.

There are a few advantages to using a wireless pocket modem when visiting Turkey. For one, you can connect multiple devices to the WiFi connection (including laptops, tablets, and smartwatches), and for another, there are no device compatibility issues like there are with SIMs and eSIMs. As long as your device connects to WiFi, it'll work. However, this option is costlier upfront, so we generally only recommend it only if you're planning to spend a lot of time in Turkey (say, longer than 90 days) where using a SIM card would become increasingly costly or if you like the combined domestic and international applicability.

Take a look at our list of the best portable pocket WiFi hotspots for travel to find out more.

Option 5: Public or Hotel WiFi

Marten Bjork

• What you need: Any device that can connect to WiFi.
• Avg. cost per gigabyte: $0.00
• Where to get it: Hotels, public squares, restaurants, cafés, museums, parks, libraries, beaches, universities, etc.
• Best for: Accessing the web when you're in a pinch (although beware of the security concerns).

The final option for connecting to the internet while in Turkey is to use a free WiFi network. This is normally the cheapest way to get online, but it also carries the most risks of all the methods we looked at in this article.

Free WiFi can give you a very different experience depending on which network you connect to exactly. Generally, connecting to free public WiFi networks from the airport, hotel, or any other sizeable and reputable institution (e.g. a museum or bank) is a safe and secure option for getting online. (However, even in these cases, we recommend against accessing sensitive websites like your work or online banking without a VPN to be on the safe side.)

The problem normally comes with unsecured public networks. Malicious actors, hackers, and other cybercriminals use many techniques to breach your personal information (e.g. email, usernames, passwords, credit card details, private messages, etc.) through free WiFi. One of the most common tricks is setting up free hotspots, often with network names that try to sound legitimate, like "Restaurant free wifi", etc., which they then use to intercept your data. Hackers can also breach other unsecured public networks to intercept data being transmitted between your device and the router, meaning you never fully know if you're in danger of being hacked, even when using a seemingly trustworthy network.

Still, there may well come a time on your Turkish vacation when connecting to a public network is needed. Fortunately, you have options. A good way to avoid most risks when connecting to free WiFi is to use a virtual proxy network (VPN). These secure tools route your connection through a third-party IP address and hide your personal information from prying eyes when online - even if you're using free public WiFi. VPNs offer advanced features such as top-notch encryption, obfuscated servers, and automatic kill switches. These make it possible for you to browse the internet anonymously in Turkey, or even to connect to a server in your home country to stream your local TV shows. In our opinion, ExpressVPN is the best VPN on the market, no matter whether you're traveling abroad or surfing at home. It comes with the most complete set of features on an easy-to-use app that you can set up with just the tap of a button. If you're budget-conscious but don't want to sacrifice too much on the quality, then we'd recommend Surfshark as a second option, which offers most of the same features as ExpressVPN but for around half the price on the annual plan.