Our family first went to Turkey in 2003. I had previously never fancied it as I had this idea (no idea from where) that it was dirty and that we would be ill if we travelled there. We have always gone to 4 or 5* all inclusive hotels in Turkey and always had a fantastic time. We have never been ill on our travels there and found the standards to be far superior to the Canaries, Spain and Greece. We just wish now that we had gone to Turkey years before. There is so much to see and do and the people are the most friendly we have come across anywhere.

This year, our 7th visit in 5 years, we bought a villa as we love the country so much we have decided to retire there eventually. If you are tired with Spain, do try Turkey, I'm sure you will be pleasantly surprised. Make sure you keep researching to find the ideal hotel.

Good luck!

Cazz

Thanks Cazz, my wife will need convincing but if we can go a good hotel will perk her up. Happy Christmas.

If you stay away from the recipes containing peppers all will be OK. (That's my opinion, and only mine!)

The peppers did tend to melt things, if you know what I mean.

Wherever you end up going, avoid buffets. And all the usual food poisoning risks. If your wife's immune system is compromised because of her treatment then speak with the counsultant about the wisdom of foreign travel right at this point. 5 * or not, you can't legislate for the hygiene of individuals within that. I speak out of concern after having a similar issue when my mum was recovering from chemo after chemo and her immune system was in shreds. What would floor you and I is much more serious for anyone with a compromised immune system. Do take medical advice rather than that from a holiday forum. And do also make sure that your holiday insurers are advised of all risks, whatever the costs.

Wherever you're going in the end, it's worth researching the medical facilities in the area. Good luck whatever you do, and travel safely

Hi GillsFC and welcome to HT!

I don't want to put a dampener on your plans, but before you go booking anything I think you should check that you can get travel insurance to cover your wife. It may be difficult and very expensive if she is still receiving treatment at the moment.

I wish her a full and speedy recovery.

luci

Hi Gills

As Cazz says many people who have never been to Turkey have a vision in their head that is actually the complete opposite to what you will find when you get there . For some reason people have a vision of a dry, dusty , dirty country when in fact it is green, scenic, clean with an excellent choice of good quality a/Is and with the most warm and friendly people we have found anywhere .

If you stick to a 4/5 star it will be far superior to what you would get in spain and the canaries. I can thoroughly recommend the Belcekiz beach hotel in Olu Deniz where you will find an excellent A/I in the centre of a lovely resort . But if you want something larger with more amenities and dont mind being isolated it may be better to choose something on the more european coast around Belek/lara beach etc where standards are excellent . We have chosen the hemera in side next year which gets brilliant reviews and is'nt as isolated .

Good luck, a holiday in Turkey will be just what the doctor ordered for your wife

Hi Gillsfc

Like luci says be wary of holiday insurance rip offs. My wife is recovering from cancer and some of the quotes I was getting for holiday insurance were ridiculously high. many companies will not even entertain you. I got an excellent deal after weeks of searching. If you want any details just PM me

my wife also took ill on holiday a few years ago in Icmeler. she was in hospital for 6 days in Marmaris and the hospital was first class very clean etc, hopefully you will never need to to use this

I have been going to Turkey now for 10 years and its such a wonderful country great people fabulous food, you should love it

stewart

smc4761 wrote:

Hi Gillsfc

Like luci says be wary of holiday insurance rip offs. My wife is recovering from cancer and some of the quotes I was getting for holiday insurance were ridiculously high. many companies will not even entertain you. I got an excellent deal after weeks of searching. If you want any details just PM me

stewart

Stewart

I would appreciate it if you could post the details of the insurance company in our Travel Insurance topic HERE for the benefit of other members. Page 1 of that topic has recommendations from our members and is updated when new info becomes available.

Thanks

luci

I would agree with most of what has been said. Strangely enough we always seemed to suffer with 'holiday tummy' in other areas like Spain and Greece in past years, even though we took all the normal precautions, but for some reason so far we are OK in Turkey.
You will find Turkish people very clean, and all the resort areas are very civilised, not the vision that seem people have.
Also as mentioned above the medical care that is available for holidaymakers, seems to be first-class - although hopefully you won't need it.
If you decide to go, I'm sure you will have a lovely time, and it will be the perfect tonic for your wife!

If you dont want a large hotel I can recommend the Devamli,a small family run hotel in Icmeler.Breakfast and dinner is served in the Loveboat restaurant on the ground floor of the hotel.Its arguably the best restaurant in Icmeler.

Turkey is a very clean country. I never had an upset tummy in all the time I was there. Obviously your wife needs to take extra care in what she eats and I think that buffet type food runs the most risk for upset tummies. Always make sure you eat freshly cooked food, spicey food is fine if you are used to it but be careful if you don't normally eat it at home. Only drink bottled water and peel fruit unless you wash it yourself. Often holiday tummy is caused by drinking too much alcohol and by over exposure to the sun rather than food though, dehydration plays a big part too so drink lots of water, it is best not to drink it icy cold though. If you are careful you should be fine, you will be as safe in Turkey as in any European country.

I hope you and your wife have a lovely time, I think maybe a smaller, quieter resort would suit best as you will be after a relaxing holiday. You don't necessarily need to stay in a large hotel, just make sure it is a good quality one.

Kedi x

if you have any doubts please contact any travel insurance company and just ask or try the cancer trust they do a specail holiday insurance
a good reputable company in our area is national that is insure and go you can contact them through there website to which i have a link on my own website good luck

Thank you everyone for your kind wishes and advice. Having worked out the treatment plan again, next May may be a little ambitious so maybe the October half term would suit us best. Hadn't even thought about the travel insurance so thanks for the advice. We'll get there in the end I hope. Thanks again.

Best of luck to your wife with her treatment, GillsFC After all of that you'll both deserve a fantastic time in Turkey. Turkey is a great country to holiday in with lots of good food to experience and lots of sights to see (and lots of haggling and shopping to do!). I've been in October a couple of times and had great weather.

October is a nice time to go, the weather is still good, warm and sunny without being too hot. I'm sure you will have a great time wherever you choose to go, Turkish hospitality is wonderful, you will find the Turks so friendly. I wish your wife well through her treatment and happy holidays for you both

hi
october is just as nice as may . I wouldnt spend my cash on a 5 star hotel as many are AI and i think alot of people eating buffet style food that where infection can come from
i would also like to reccomend the devamli hotel in icemeler, we took my mum and dad and my dads also got cancer and we where all fine
there hoilday insurance over 70;s was £70 each for a fortnite