Souvenirs to Take Home From a Holiday in Turkey

Shopping for souvenirs is one of the best ways to end any holiday and Turkey with its bustling souks and medinas is of no exception. However, with so much choice it can be hard to know which souvenirs are worth bringing home, so to make things easier here's our list of the souvenirs that you simply must bring home from your Turkey holidays.

Evil Eye

You will see these blue eye trinkets everywhere on your holidays in Turkey from pinned on the babygro of a newborn baby to painted on the tail-fins of the national air carrier. This is because the locals believe that envious gazes from others or high praise can bring around bad luck. The Evil Eye bead or Nazar Boncuk is commonly worn to ward away the bad spirits which piggyback on people's words or looks. The Evil Eye charm is commonly a white eye set upon a blue background. The blue represents water which is a precious commodity in a dry country like Turkey. The Evil Eye is widely available as a souvenir and comes in many different forms from bracelets and hair slides to wind charms and tea-coasters, all of which can be purchased on your Turkey holidays.

Turkish Delight

Turkish Delight makes a great gift for that kindly neighbour who offered to feed your cat or water your flowers whilst you were on your holidays to Turkey. However, what your neighbour perhaps doesn't realise as she happily tucks into her rose flavoured box of delights is that the sweet was actually invented way back in the 1700s. The story goes that then Sultan cracked his tooth on a sourball and grumbled that he was fed up with hard candy and demanded something softer. The confectioner to the Royal Court took it upon himself to create a soft sweet for his Majesty and Turkish Delight was born. On your holidays in Turkey you can visit the original shop where Turkish Delight was first invented in Eminonu. The fact that this shop is still standing 250 years after the first incarnation of this royal sweet is a testament to the unfaltering popularity of Turkish Delight.

Turkish Rugs

Everyone knows that Turkey is the place to go if you want to buy a carpet, but what you many not realise are that the best carpets are not found in the bustling souks or even the carpet showrooms but instead can be found in the historic destination of Cappadocia.

You can purchase excursions to Cappadocia from all of the major Turkey holiday destinations and these generally include a pit stop in one of Cappadocia's famous carpet shops. One of the regions best known is the Sultan Carpet store located on the outskirts of Goreme.

Obviously purchasing a traditional carpet is a big commitment and there are a few tips to ensure that you get a carpet which will last your family for years to come. Firstly you may want to run a slightly damp cloth over the top of your Turkish rug, if the store keeper will allow you. This test allows you to determine whether chemical dyes have been used in the dying process. Chemical dyes can sometimes run and also mean that the carpet will lose its value a lot quicker. However, the most important thing to remember when buying a Turkish carpet is to make like the locals and haggle over the price. This is guaranteed to save you pounds whilst on your Turkey holidays.