Hello folks was looking for some info for driving in turkey. Supposed to be heading there next month and I basically have no idea of the do’s and dont’s of trucking there.
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Ring Scot Pulleyn at Pulleyn transport at Reading, they haul to Turkey, the roads are very good, modern country, it feels like you are in Europe but not, as its Asia .
Safe country to drive in, good coffee on pit stops, the lorry drivers have kitchens and fridges in the side of their trailers, if they offer a Turkish coffee or tea, it is deemed good manners to accept it.
Regular police road blocks to check all types of vehicles day and night and in the middle of nowhere .
toby1234abc:
Ring Scot Pulleyn at Pulleyn transport at Reading, they haul to Turkey, the roads are very good, modern country, it feels like you are in Europe but not, as its Asia .
I’m pretty sure Turkey is in Europe this side of the Bosphorus. I have been there, but not for nearly 20 years so I won’t offer advice about going there because it will almost certainly be out of date. I seem to remember that I quite enjoyed it though, I had a week off in Istanbul and my then girlfriend flew out, we went to the Blue Mosque, Dolbamache Palace etc.
Im sure it was discussed on here that you may need a special visa for driving a truck in and delivering in Turkey, something along the lines of a temporary work visa as you are in effect there working and not holidaying etc! If you were transiting across Turkey to get to another country then that was one form of visa but to deliver in Turkey itself, you may well need a different type. Could well be wrong as I have never been there but im sure I read it somewhere. Good luck.
When I was doing it, you needed a TIR-Kamyon Sofar visa (lorry driver’s visa) showing single, double or multiple exits depending on whether you were tipping in Turkey or transiting to Middle East. I believe you have to get it in advance still. Robert
robert1952:
When I was doing it, you needed a TIR-Kamyon Sofar visa (lorry driver’s visa) showing single, double or multiple exits depending on whether you were tipping in Turkey or transiting to Middle East. I believe you have to get it in advance still. Robert
Yes, I think that was it Robert. It was a visa specific to truck drivers and differed depending on whether you were tipping in or transiting through Turkey. This is a different visa than a holiday one! So I believe!! 
It’s been 15 years and I only went twice and a lot could have changed since then. I definitely needed a visa for lorry drivers which I got in London but one driver I met en route didn’t have one and an old middle east driver advised him to stop off at Komotini in Greece and get one from the Turkish embassy there, which he did, but maybe that’s changed.
I went via the Ipsala border crossing, which was a bit of a pig, bungs, bribes and Marlboro’s were the only way (even the doctor who signed you off as healthy wanted 20 ■■■■).
If you’ve got an agent at the border it might make life a lot easier.
Once in Turkey it was fine, nice roads, great people, but watch the mad minibuses around the Istanbul outskirts, they pull onto the side of the motorway to let people off and rejoin without indicating or looking, I learned to stay in lane 2 in the end.
I don’t suppose many uk drivers go there much nowadays so let us know how it went and have a safe trip.
when I went there regular in 2005-2008 there were no bribes to be given. which, at times, was a nuisance, because it meant if you had a problem with the paperwork (such as an incorrect weight of the cargo), then it wasn’t a question of a couple of packs of marlboro. no agent for me either, might take you longer the first time, but after that you know the ropes anyway.
Cheers for all your input folks. Appreciate it! Will lets you’s no how it goes! Any more tips then please post because every little helps
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jazybhoy:
Cheers for all your input folks. Appreciate it! Will lets you’s no how it goes! Any more tips then please post because every little helpsSent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Hi Jazy
You definately need a visa and you must go to the Turkish Embassy in London in person.
I would give them a call and explain what you are doing and ask them what you need to submit in order to obtain your truck drivers visa. Tipping visa and transit visa require different documentation. Once you have the correct docs you can be in and out in a few hours if you get there early.
Good luck.
GS
Cheers gs. The boss is sorting everything out but I have stressed that I need a tipping visa,so he’s on the case at the moment. They don’t make things easy these days. Thanks for your reply. Jazybhoy
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Be careful on your driving…Turkey has ( or used to have ) a rule that says If you wasnt here, it wouldnt have happened which basically means its your fault…m,ind you i never had an issue driving the truck, but was in a taxi which had an accident, and everyone with me said RUN …i found out why afterwards…which is what i quoted above.
Yes GS is right, you must get a commercial visa from the embassy in London…for tourists, you can get an E visa on line.
Ha Ha Bobby
I think we were in the same cab…he got into a bit of a crash and we bolted, left him sitting in the middle of three lanes near Kasim’s yard.
Good old days eh…