Taxi drivers are one of the very few down-sides of Istanbul. It’s nearly for sure that your taxi driver will not speak any other language than Turkish. It’s likely that they will try to overcharge you by taking a longer route. There will be no seat belts at the back and they’ll drive dangerously. They will not help you with your bags either.
Please don’t be terrified. This doesn’t mean that you should not take a taxi but be prepared for these facts and don’t get stressed about them. Let it go. Concentrate on the great things about Istanbul. There are so many of them, it shouldn’t be hard to find. Take your ride and forgive your driver. The good thing about taxis is their fare. Not very cheap but quite reasonable. A 20 kilometre ride -without much traffic jam- will cost you around 30 Lira, which is approximately 14 Euro, 12 Sterling, 20 USD.
I apologize on their behalf in advance.
