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Capital City: Ankara. (Population 3 million)
Largest city: Istanbul. (Population 12 million)
Population: 65 million people: 85% Turks, 12% Kurds (although the Kurdish population is not officially recognised by the government), 3% Other (including Jews and Armenians).
Area: 779,452 sq km
Currency: Turkish Lira (TRL)
Though the country's economic problems have eased slightly in recent times, inflation in Turkey still means that price hikes and wild exchange-rate fluctuations are almost daily occurrences.
In the past 15 years alone, the Turkish Lira has gone from TRL 2000 = £1 to TRL 2,000,000 = £1 with the result that every year many of the country's smaller notes and coins have to be phased out.
The highest value note is currently worth TRL 10,000,000, the lowest coin TRL 5,000. Be aware that the TRL 10,000,000 and the TRL 100,000 notes look rather similar, especially in poor light.
If possible, refrain from purchasing your Turkish currency until inside the country and be prepared to change a small amount every few days in order to account for any sudden movements in the exchange rate.
Money can also be drawn on foreign cash cards linked to the Cirrus, Plus or Visa networks from Turkish automatic cash dispensers (ATMs) which have been installed outside most city banks.
Many attractions and restaurants now quote their prices in dollars, which are often happily accepted in place of lira. Most will also accept the major international credit cards.
Language: Turkish is spoken throughout the country, although in the southeast many people's first language is Kurdish. French, German and English speakers are common in the big cities.
Visa: Visitors from the UK require a three-month visa to enter Turkey, which can be obtained in advance from the Turkish consulate or, for a £10 fee, upon arrival in the country. You must also be in possession of a passport valid for at least a year from your date of entry.
Customs: Turkish customs officials tend to be much more lax on people entering the country than they are on those leaving.
You may bring the following into Turkey without incurring customs duty: 400 cigarettes, 50 cigars, 200g tobacco, five litres of wine or spirits, five bottles of perfume, 1.5kg of coffee.
Geography: 1000 miles east to west, 400 miles north to south, Turkey is perhaps best described as a vast lumpy rectangle.
It famously straddles two continents, although it's only the northwest tip that actually does the straddling with a small section - including most of Istanbul - lying on the extremity of Europe.
The remaining 90% of the landmass is squarely in Asia. Surrounded on three sides by water - the Black Sea to the north, the Aegean Sea to the west and the Mediterranean Sea to the south - Turkey nonetheless has borders with no less than seven countries: Greece and Bulgaria to the west, and Georgia, Armenia, Iran, Iraq and Syria to the east and south.
Turkey's varied geography includes great stretches of desert in the interior, dense forest in the east, and long sandy beaches that match anything in the rest of Europe.
Turkey's waterways include the Tigris ('Dicle' in Turkish) and Euphrates ('Firat') rivers and vast freshwater lakes.
It is a very mountainous country, and the topography is dominated by two great ranges: the Black Sea Mountains of the north and the Taurus Mountains of the south, which between them boast some 90 peaks over 10,000ft
Mt Ararat - where Noah's Arc supposedly came to rest following the great flood - is in the east, near the Iranian border.
Religion: 97% Muslim, 3% Christian, Jewish and other religions. Freedom of worship is guaranteed under Turkey's secular constitution.
Time: Greenwich Mean Time plus 2 hours (Greenwich Mean Time plus 3 hours from the final Sunday in March to the final Saturday in October).
Electricity: Voltage: 220V at 50Hz. Wall sockets take 2 or 3-pronged plugs.
Telephone: To call Turkey from the UK, dial 0090 (the international code plus the Turkish country code), the area code (e.g. 212 for European Istanbul), then the eight-figure number.
Public telephones are common in towns and cities throughout the country and accept either phone cards - available in denominations of 30 ($2), 60 ($3.50) or 100 ($5) units - or tokens (jetons), both of which can be bought from post offices, newspaper sellers and some shops. Most phones carry printed instructions in English.
To make an international call from Turkey, dial 00, then the country code (remembering to omit the initial 0), then the number.
As in all counties, hotels in Turkey will charge heavily for the privilege of using their phones, particularly if you're making an international call.
For mobile phones, Turkey uses GSM 900/1800, which is compatible with much of the rest of Europe.
All hotels and post offices can provide fax facilities. Internet cafés are now common in big cities such as Istanbul and Ankara.
Emergency Numbers:
Police Tel: 155
Ambulance Tel: 122
Fire Service Tel: 110
Tourism Police Tel: 212 527 4503
Post: Turkish post offices can be spotted by their yellow PTT sign and, in the major towns, are usually open from 8am to 8pm from Monday to Saturday, and 9am to 7pm on Sunday, although smaller branch offices may close earlier.
Be warned, the Turkish postal system is famously slow.
Business Hours: Banks are usually open from Monday to Friday between 8.30am and 5pm, closed for lunch between 12.30pm and 1.30pm.
Most museums are open from Tuesday to Sunday, between 9.30am and 5pm.
Shops and bazaars usually stay open Monday through Saturday from 9.30am until 7pm, with a lunchbreak taken between 1pm and 2pm.
Cafés and restaurants tend to operate open-ended hours and may not close till early in the morning.
Mosques can be visited during the day, although you should avoid prayer times, which take place five times a day, and Fridays, the Muslim holy day.
Tipping: In restaurants, a service charge of between 10 and 15 per cent will normally be added to your bill, although, as this tends to go straight into the restaurant's coffers, you may consider leaving a further tip of around 10% for the waiter if you feel the service merited it.
You don't have to tip taxi drivers (except for very long journeys) but will be expected to round the fare up to the nearest TRL 100,000. Hotel porters should be tipped a few coins.
VAT: VAT (KDV or Katma Deger Vergisi in Turkish) is payable on a range of goods and services including meals and accommodation, currently stands at 17% and may not always be included in the quoted price.
BBC World Service:
MHz 15.57, 12.10, 9.410, 6.195
English Language Press: There is one English language daily newspaper printed in Turkey, the Turkish Daily News, which is available from news stands in all major cities and towns.
Disabled Access: Disabled access in Turkey is not as good as it should be.
Some of the major museums and tourist attractions have installed ramps and there are a few buses with special disabled seats and 'kneeling suspension', but this is about as far as provision for the mobility-impaired goes at present.
Many roads and pavements are poorly maintained, making even simple journeys hazardous for wheelchair users. Disabled access is still largely dependent on the kindness of the local population rather than a legal right. The tourist office produces a list of hotels with disabled facilities.
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