The Rules of Bargaining in Turkey!!

A few simple bargaining or haggling tips will help you get the best price for whatever you buy in Turkey.

Bargaining or haggling is a tradition in Turkey as in many other countries. Shoppers in Europe and America bargain over price when they buy cars, houses and other expensive items. In Turkey, bargaining is extended to include many less valuable items, especially unique handmade goods such as carpets, crafts, artwork and antiques, items which do not have standardized markets.

Many people find bargaining tedious and distasteful. Get over it! Pazarlik (bargaining) is a social as well as a business practice in Turkey, and can be relatively pleasant when done properly.




Here are rules for getting a good price:




1. Know the Market. Browse, examine goods and ask prices in several shops (at least three) to get a sense of the market before bargaining. This is particularly important for carpet shops.

2. Don't show enthusiasm for the item you want. A poker face pays off, believe me. Look at several items. Don't ask prices for awhile, but when you do, ask the prices of several items, whether you're interested in them or not. Act as though the piece you really, really want is only so-so, not a big deal.

3. Decide what you think a piece is worth to you. Many people are distressed to find that someone else bought a similar item for less. Don't worry about it! Sometimes you'll be the one getting the best price. If you decide what an item is worth to you and pay no more than that, how can you go wrong? By definition, you've received value for your money. People who play the "I-got-it-cheaper" game need to get a life.
4. Let the shopkeeper quote the first price. If a shopkeeper asks "What will you pay?" you should ask again "What's the price?" The shopkeeper's price will be higher than what s/he expects you to pay. There's no fixed formula for making your counter-offer. It should be substantially less than you expect or want to pay, a half or even a quarter of the shopkeeper's price (depending on how inflated that is). If your counter-offer is way too low, however, the shopkeeper will know he's dealing with someone who doesn't know the market (see Rule No. 1, above), or doesn't get what bargaining is all about.

5. If you buy several items, get a discount. It's always easier to get a lower price if you buy several items, just like anywhere in the world.

6. Don't haggle over pennies. If you're close to agreement on price, don't let a few Turkish liras get in the way of your satisfaction.

7. Don't be afraid to walk away...(and perhaps come back). It's one of those philosophical conundrums: you get the best price on an item if you can convince yourself that you really don't need it. If you really can't bring yourself to pay the shopkeeper's final price, thank him or her and walk out of the shop. Seeing a potential sale walking away, the shopkeeper may meet your price (or at least offer a further discount). If not, then you've learned that the shopkeeper's price is firm, and you can return in an hour or a day and buy the item at that price, or you can look for it elsewhere, knowing the market better.

8. Don't feel obligated to buy unless you've agreed on a price. Shopping is a social custom in Turkey. You will be offered tea, coffee or soft drinks, and perhaps cigarettes, snacks, perhaps even a meal. The shopkeeper may wait on you for a considerable time, showing you dozens of items and explaining their qualities. Even so, you are not obligated to buy anything at all! Distrust any shopkeeper who tries to burden you with the feeling that you should buy "because s/he has spent a lot of time with you." Leave the shop and don't go back. You have no obligation whatsoever!

However, if you offer a price and the shopkeeper agrees to it, you've made a verbal contract and you have an obligation to buy the item at the price agreed upon. Don't offer a price unless you're ready to buy the item at that price.

9. Assume that any price agreed upon is for cash.Banks charge anywhere from 2% to 6% to clear a credit card transaction. Unless you have discussed the payment method, any price arrived at is presumed to be payable in cash. The shopkeeper may charge you thecredit card fee, or a fee for changing travelers checks. You should check to see if you can pay in any method other than Turkish lira cash, and what requirements there might be.

10. Take your purchases with you if possible. Many shops will ship your purchase home for you reliably, a few may not. There have been instances in which someone has purchased an expensive carpet but has had a cheap but similar carpet arrive at their home. In a few cases, the purchase is never shipped, or is "lost in shipment." If you must have the shop ship your purchase, find out as much as possible about the shipping process, and try to confirm all aspects of it.



Have a Nice Shopping :)

Feel the Magic of Christmas

 Do you remember the Christmas joy  you felt as a child? The thrill of seeing snow falling gently   from the sky, blanketing the ground with a white beauty?

The pleasure of watching  twinkling lights so alive with color so bright with their warm glow?
The excitement of exploring the packages wrapped with their beautiful bows  and  paper, so full of wonderful mystery?
The pure delight of decorating the tree, ooh-ing and ah-ing over the ornaments that had been found a new?
The aroma of Christmas cooking that escaped from the kitchen and filled the house with deliciouspromises of what would soon come?

Enjoy this magic of the Christmas season with your friends and family and our entertainment  programm!

We start our Christmas celebrations, and yes Santa will visit you at the hotel, the festive atmosphere is in the air. You will definitely have a Christmas time to remember. Enjoy a big Christmas feast of rich Turkish cuisine and party the night away…

our entertainment team prepared for you an amazing christmas decoration to make your time in one word magical!
Discover the enchanting world of Christmas… Christmas is a time when we all come together with our family and friends. Therefore, we must take special efforts to make the moment special. This can be done through Christmas programs. These programs make our Christmas celebration fun and enjoyable with  an amazing entertainment programm. We have a great selection of party nights,live music ,dance shows,magic shows  and tasty festive delights which are guaranteed to get you in the mood for celebrating

We have a great selection of tribute & theme nights for you to enjoy in December

our annual Christmas dance show is always an event to look forward to, so ensure you will be right at time for one of our superb dance nights…

Raise your glass and make a toast to the Christmas season with great music at one of our Christmas live music nights, you can dance till midnight!

                                                               Merry Christmas

                                                      Time to built friendship!!

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Facts You Should Know About Turkish Coffee.

To Make a really delicious, authentic frothy Turkish coffee is a skill that not everyone can master. The Turks found the Turkish coffee back in the 16th century, and it has been in the Turkish culture for over 450 years. For example, when a young couple has fallen in love, and made the decision to spend the rest of their lives together, the male must tell his family that they are going to the females parents house and ask for the girls hand in marriage. This is the hard part for the male, but it is not all one sided. The girl has to impress the boys parents with a fine authentic Frothy Turkish Coffee on her own, for them to then ask for her hand in marriage. It is also used for fortunes to be read. They must drink the coffee, and right at the end there is stil some thick coffee left in it. Once this is present, you must turn the cup over and wait for it to go cold. Once it is cold, a very skillful person can read your fortune! Many Hotels Promote this fine Turkish delicacy by having a turkish coffee stand in the lobby with a waiter dressed in traditional attire serving fine Turkish coffee.

How Is It Made?

The thing that makes Turkish coffee different from other coffees is its cup. It can only be used for Turkish coffee. There is also an instrument that can be used only for turkish coffee which is called a cezve. You must pour a turkish coffee cup of water in the cezve, plus a teaspoon of very fine coffee, and the amount of sugar you require: for little sugar half a teaspoon, fair amount of sugar 1 teaspoon, for a sweet turkish coffee a teaspoon and a half. You must put this on a very low heat for it to froth, which should take a good 10 minutes minimum. Then, once it has frothed you must take away from the heat 2-3 times. Once you have done this, the coffee is ready to be served. First, you must only fill up to half of the coffee cup.this is so froth in the cup can be formed. Then, you must pour the remainder in the cezve into the cup after 20-30 seconds. The bit at the bottom is called Telve. It should not be consumed.

How Should It Be Served?

A Turkish Coffee is served with a glass of water to clean the palette to enjoy the exquisite taste of a fine Turkish Coffee.

The Turkish Coffees Special Features:

• Even Today, is prepared using the worlds oldest methods.
• It is made up of Froth, Coffee and Telve
• Because of the soft, velvety taste, The Taste of coffee is the longest lasting in the world.
• It is more consistent and aromatic than any other coffees in the world.
• There is no other coffee like it, because there is no need for a filter due to the Tilve at the bottom
• Because you add the sugar in with the coffee in the Cezve, there is no need to ADD sweetners or sugars, once finished. There is no sugary taste in the original aroma either, just a plain softened coffee.

                                                Enjoy Your Turkish Coffee  :))

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What Kind of Nourishment Should We Have Whilst on Holiday?

When the summer comes, a lot of people go to holiday destinations all around the world. They make use of the summer and its sidekicks, the sea, the beach and the sun, and even at the all inclusive hotels with their food buffets and unlimited alcohol. You find that you put on weight on top of what you already have, and then it takes an endless amount of time to get rid of it all, even though you just did not know how the time flew on that 1-2 week holiday, and where all that weight came from. So how can we have a healthier holiday but yet enjoy it?

You can find food and drink 24 hours a day in most hotels (see our blog on how hotels get their stars, and you will find that it is a Standard for having 24 hour food service in a hotel that is 3 stars and above.). Thinking like this also gives positive results, as you dont need to think about getting hungry. And once you know what is going on in the hotels, you can easily burn all the weight that you are gaining by taking full advantage of the facilities that are available to use everyday. For instance swimming in the pool or sea, even taking a leisurely stroll on the beach are very good ways of burning fat, and fun too!

Another important point to be considered within the all inclusive system is fluid consumption. Those who are thirsty, quench their thirst with alcohol at the best of times  because it is included in the all-inclusive system. However, due to the chemicals inside alcohol, the body needs to push it out of the blood, which turns it into fat. Whilst on holiday, a female needs to consume at least 2.7 liters, and a male at least 3.7 liters of water everyday. The amount is more for those who are over the height-weight ratio.

It is recommended that you make at least an hour of sports everyday whilst on holiday. The actions that we do at work in our lives could be measured up as the same as one hour of sport everyday. For this reason, there are plenty of things to do with the animation team during the day that are fun and energetic and fantastic in ways of exercise. For those of you who think leave me be, im on holiday i can eat and drink and do what i want and what i dont want or i’ll eat here, and then ill start exercising when i get back home.. DONT!! People are more at risk of having a heart whilst on holiday in hot countries with all the luxurious drinks than they are at home.

We wish you healthy and beautiful holidays!

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An Explanation Into Why Problems with Air Conditioning Units in Hotels Occur During Seasonal Changes

As we all know, tourists, especially those who live in countries that have mostly wet and cold seasons have holidays in hot regions. The Mediterranean is prime example of this. However, in the spring season the hotels in area, bar a few which are small 3stars/boutique hotels that have split air-con in the rooms, guests find that there are a few problems with the air-conditioning, in the big 5stars hotels. This is down to the fact that big hotels use a central air conditioning system. Due to the structure of these buildings, it is almost impossible to use split air-con, so therefore enormous cooling towers are used.

You can see this in the example below;

These systems are placed outside of the hotel buildings and are passed through separate pipes (hot water pipe & cold water pipe) throughout the hotel

The problem mentioned above arises at this point exactly. The problem with Central Air conditioning units is that they cannot be altered to any temperature when required like split air-con units. The units are altered by technical staff to the needs of the hotel whether hot or cold air is required.

Example: In the months of spring, the aircon may need to be switched on after 22 degrees centigrade. Once 22 degrees has been reached, then it will be switched on. Once the settings have been made, they usually are unable to be altered again, so even though guests may be uncomfortable with the air, there is nothing anyone can do about it. If the temperature drops, which usually occurs at night, the air-conditioning will stop operating and will cool down and be ready in time for when it heats up again. If the temperature outside drops below a certain temperature, then it maybe that the unit will automatically start the heating process. For instance, if the temperature drops below 15 degrees, then the hotel will be heated up instantly. Most complaints are brought to Reception. Reception will then inform technical services, if more than 3 rooms are not happy in regards to the temperature, then a slight change in the system is available. However this usually takes 40-45 minutes. This is due to the fact that all the water within the hotel structure must be cooled.





You can see that on most Travel & Tourism websites that a lot of complaints at this time of year of the fact that the air conditioning at night does not work. We hope this was a good explanation into why.

Happy Holidays in Advance

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WHAT RISK YOU SHOULD BE AWARE OF AROUND POOLS !!!

In most Places, the temperature is in the mid 30s. Those who are in the Aegean and Mediterranean Regions are throwing themselves into the sea and pools. However we need to lend an ear to the professionals at this time of year.



“Especially at this time of year, chemical and physical checks are not always made, sometimes neglected and also not taken seriously. These mistakes are serious hazards to health” say the professionals.



In order to get rid of the Mid-summer heat, most jump in the sea and pools to cool down, as it is a dream for us to keep cool during the day, even if it is for a short time. People must be aware of the dangers and diseases that the water has in that you can catch if the appropriate checks are not carried out

Fungal infections of the genitals, bacterial vaginitis, molloscum cantagiosum, legionella pnemophila and trikomanas infections are always visible. Pools that are not properly looked after and treated have the chances of Hepatitis A, Hepatitis E, dysentery, typhoid fever and Para typhoid fever being in the pools waiting for the unlucky one to catch.



How can we guard ourselves from these risks? What should pool users be aware of?

Before you enter the pool, you should rinse your feet in antiseptic water, and always have a shower. If you don’t do this, you will infect the pool with millions of micro organisms. Shorts that have been made out of nylon should not be used in the pools, you shouldn’t sit down with wet shorts and you should dry them off straight away. You should always check on the poolsigns around the pool when and whether or not the pool is regularly moderated, and there is any issues with this, a supervisor or official should be informed straight away. Children should not be allowed to foul or spit in the pools. Parents should make sure that they don’t swallow the water. Babies and toddlers should not enter the pool with nappies, nor should their nappies be changed around the pool. Those with earaches should block there ears up.



What you need to watch out for when going to a hotel on holiday as a tourist.


Before you pay for your holiday at where you are staying whether it is a holiday village, a hotel or any other type of complex, you should make sure with your travel agents that this complex is up to date with Health and safety standards and has all necessary certificates in the right places, which have been awarded by official personnel on the health & safety boards. If you are booking your hotel online, you can get in contact with the executive personnel of the hotel who will be glad to give you the correct information, if they have it. They can easily email you the correct documents when requested.

The official documents look similar to those below;

http://www.nbcert.com/ 

Wish you  have enjoyable times on your holiday...

P.S : We always suggest you to use the sea on your holidays.Because many many chemicals are used for pools to make them clean.But nature one is always good.
Sun - Sea - Sand :))

We invite you to follow us on our Facebook Page www.facebook.com/hotellarabeachantalya  where we publish photo's, video's and news about Hotel Lara Beach.

All inclusive hotel in Antalya, Turkey ... Hotel Lara Beach

Dear Visitors,

In our first article in our blog that's been created in the name of Hotel Lara Beach Lara/Antalya, we would like to give you some information about our hotel.

Location Of  Hotel Lara Beach

Lara Beach Hotel; situated at the new Tourism Centre Lara/Kundu which is along the shores of the Mediterranean part of Turkey that is 17 km away from the centre of Antalya, 12 km from its international airport.

Rooms Of Hotel Lara Beach

Total number of rooms is 311.Descriptions of our room types are below

• All Inclusive Honeymoon Room. In order to have unforgettable all inclusive honeymoon holiday , there are 5 honeymoon suite in our complex. Please click this link to see honeymoon room type
• All Inclusive Economic Room. To save more money after a all inclusive holiday, there are economic rooms which has no balcony to stay at Hotel Lara Beach.

• All Inclusive Standard Room. For couple or two adults plus one child , there are standard rooms. Please click this link to see Standard room type.
• All Inclusive Large Standard Room. For all inclusive family holidays, there are Large Standard rooms that are available for 4 pax.

• All Inclusive Family Rooms. For large families there are family rooms that have two separate rooms with a door between. Please click this link to see Family Room type.
• All Inclusive Duplex Room.2 floored and there is 1 bathroom and 1 bed at each floors in this room type,If you like  to have a special all inclusive family holiday. Please click this link to see Duplex Room type.

FOOD AND BEVERAGEALL-INCLUSIVE SYSTEM.

A variety of food carefully chosen from the Turkish and world cuisines which are suitable to all kinds of palatial tastes are prepared in our modern kitchen and served at our open-buffet and snack restaurants. Local drinks (free of charge) and imported drinks (charged for), pastry  are served at 5 different bars.

FOOD AND BEVERAGE SCHEDULE

FOOD UNITS

• Jasmine’s Main Restaurant (Open Buffet)
• Bellini Italian Restaurant 
• Tuğra Turkish Restaurant
• Marina Fish Restaurant
• Yorük Tent (for Pancake, Pizza)
• Sunset Snack
• Carmen Café Patisserie

BEVERAGE UNITS

• Elite Lobby bar 
• Sunset Snack Bar 
• Silence Pool Bar 
• Select Bar 
• Vitamin Bar 

FACILITIES

• Swimming pools 
• Children's paradise 
• Health club 
• Shopping Centre 
• Health services 
• Entertainment 
• Game land 

WATER SPORTS CENTRE

LAND SPORTS

PARTIES ON THE BIGGEST PIER AT LARA

And much more.                  

Hotel Lara Beach, with its own special atmosphere, offers you the mysterious beauties of the Mediterranean shores.

We invite you to follow us on on our Facebook page where we publish photo's, video's and news about Hotel Lara Beach.

Wish you have a nice Holiday!

Management of Hotel Lara Beach