Living in Turkey | Moving to Turkey for permanent residence | How to choose a city in Turkey to move to

Permanent residence in Turkey. Choosing where to live in Turkey. Features of life in different cities of Turkey, the most suitable options for moving to permanent residence

Moving to Turkey. Adaptation

How difficult is it to adapt to the Turkish way of life once you are in Turkey? To change habits and lifestyle?

Of course, moving to another country is a psychologically difficult process. Or we set ourselves up in such a way that we don't know how it will be, who the Turks are, what they are all about and so on.

So it is definitely not easy when you do it for the first time. The misunderstanding of some things remains for another year, and then it goes away, i.e. you might just miss some friends, some familiar things. But after a year, it stops.

The adjustment period in Turkey is pretty quick.

Moving to another country, to another city, to Antalya, for example, everybody knows that here there is sun, palm trees, sea, but often they do not know exactly people, their attitude to foreigners, their mentality.

And people here treat foreigners with a desire to help! It is in the Oriental culture that for them a foreigner is not like in Europe, where newcomers feel like strangers, and here the Turks give the feeling that you are a guest.

That's why they have a completely open, friendly attitude, newcomers don't have to stand in some state of platoon and see where a " flying grenade" will come at you, but you can just live with the fact that people help and are friendly to you.

The advantages of living in Antalya

Antalya is the perfect balance of a large developed city and a resort.

It has both the Mediterranean sea and a beautiful promenade, because not every city in Turkey has the opportunity to swim and relax within the metropolitan area itself.

Cities like Izmir and Istanbul, for instance, also have the sea, but it is impossible to swim there; you have to go somewhere in the suburbs to get to the beach.

Antalya offers people more than just the sea, it offers a landscaped promenade - one of the best in the world - with walking and jogging paths, cafés and restaurants, leisure areas.

And it offers the advantages of a big city, where children can go to school, then go to university.

Antalya has many Shopping Malls, shops, museums, great transport connections, the opportunity to go on holiday to the mountains, to neighbouring regions to the lakes, somewhere else. This means that you live and enjoy all the advantages of a big city, its infrastructure, hospitals, clinics, colleges and so on, but at the same time you live in a resort and swim in the sea.

In the whole Antalya region there are around two million people, with Antalya itself having somewhere around one million three hundred people, or even one and a half million people. So it is quite a big city!

There is an interesting point: there is an opinion that people from Moscow come to Red Square very rarely, as well as people who live in seaside cities, running businesses or working, they do not go to the sea very often.

If a person has a business, works or is busy with urgent matters, he doesn't get to the sea very often. A little in summer time, once a week, and only because it is necessary to take children there.

But on the other hand, you can go to the sea more often, just for a walk, at any time, even in winter. You can go for a walk along the seafront, not swimming in the sea, but just for a walk, to get some air, to look at the mountains, and it's great!

You can also cycle, run and do sport on the seafront - a definite plus!  

Many people ask whether all complexes have a sea view?

When you have been living in Antalya for many years, it is not so important to see the sea every day. The infrastructure around is more important, there should be a lot of entertainment for children, for example. And then you can sacrifice the sea view in order to move to a more interesting complex with children's playgrounds, swimming pool, water slides and other attributes of resort life.

Popular city districts - Konyaalti and Lara

There are two areas in Antalya where both foreigners and Turks themselves like to live. And it is by no means the city centre.

Because in the centre there are old houses, narrow streets built 40 years ago, no residential complexes with developed infrastructure, no swimming pools, i.e. it is not prestigious to live in the centre here.

Foreigners prefer the more central but prestigious and quieter green areas.

And these districts, Konyaalti and Lara, are known to many because they are very comfortable.

In Lara, for example, there are spectacular views of the sea with one small disadvantage: there are no shallow beaches because it stands on a cliff and you can enjoy the beautiful views, but to get to the beach you have to go somewhere else again!

The two districts of Lara and Konyaalti are considered the most prestigious or the most livable by Antalya standards.

And the famous waterfall, the river that flows into the sea, is just in the district of Lara! It flows from a height of 20 to 30 metres and the rock on which the district itself is located is called Falez, which means cliff.

Life in Turkey. In which cities do people from Europe buy property?

Of course, a city like Alanya is also popular.

If Antalya is this regional centre, then Alanya is a town in this region of Antalya. Our English-speakers love it because it is a quiet, peaceful town with beautiful coastal areas.

The most popular destinations are probably these two - Antalya and Alanya, and then Istanbul, Izmir, Fethiye, Bodrum, and Mersin - such destinations that our English-speaking people still know and love.

The main difference between Antalya and Alanya

Alanya is more of a tourist town, it is alive in the summer. As the season comes to an end, a lot of people move out, tourists disperse and many complexes stand half-empty.

If in Antalya there is always life in all the complexes, because there are so many Turks and so many foreigners, then there it is more of a holiday destination, where more foreigners live and holiday.

Alanya is ideal for those who are retired or who want to live by the sea, have already made money, do not need to work, do not need all the hustle and bustle of the city and infrastructure, for them it would be ideal! Those who love beauty and nature.

But if people have children, if children need to be educated, then the choice of private and public schools in Antalya is by far the best.

There is a university in Antalya that can offer children a good education. And of course there is a much bigger choice of jobs!

Learning English and Turkish Which school to choose?

Turkey has a 12-year education system. Children study 4 years in primary school, then 4 years in secondary school and another 4 years in lyceum.

As for teaching in English, there are two public schools in Antalya and one school in Alanya where children can learn English, but only with knowledge of the Turkish language can enter a Turkish university.

If you come to Turkey and your life and goals are bound to Turkey in the future, you want your children to live, study and work here, it is better to send your children to a Turkish school.

When they move, they can study for a year in an English school, for example if they have difficulties with the Turkish language, and then go to a Turkish school. Therefore, the earlier you send your child to this community, the earlier your child will start speaking Turkish and children learn Turkish very quickly, the sooner they will make more friends, including Turks, the faster they will fit into Turkish life and the easier it will be for them to go to university in the future.

So we recommend, of course, a Turkish school.

Foreign Schools in Turkey

Who needs an English-speaking school? Those who, for example, want to continue their higher education in the EU or abroad.

Or people don't have the courage to send their children directly to a Turkish school, so they send their children to a foreign language school in order to make the changeover from one system to another gentler.

There is one school near Mersin, where they are building a nuclear power plant, so there is a school for English-speaking children in Selifke.

And of course there is an international school in Istanbul.

That is in Istanbul, there is one in Mersin, and there are two in Antalya, and one in Alanya. 

Is Istanbul interesting to move to?

Istanbul is a megalopolis, just like London, and even more, given that London has a well-developed metro network, but Istanbul has very few metro stations, almost none by London's standards.

In other words, it is a megalopolis, which requires dedicating half of one's life to getting somewhere to work or to go home or to visit friends. And it takes up to two hours to get there, an hour at best.

At the same time you can reach Antalya from any part of the city in 30-40 minutes maximum without any traffic jams. And a person after that is not very ready for such heroic deeds, having moved to Istanbul, again to spend on road on 2 hours.

That is why Istanbul is not very comfortable for living.

It is suitable for those who want to do business and already have some ties in Turkey, or for those who want their children to get education later, study at universities. Because, of course, the level of education in Istanbul in schools and universities is very serious, very high.

Exactly for a comfortable life Istanbul is hardly suitable, well, for a life with plans of embedding children in Turkey and their business it would be a good alternative!

Jobs in Turkey. In which city is it easier to find a good job? 

Finding a good job in Turkey for foreigners is - let's be honest - hard!

You can't go here with rose-tinted glasses - I'll come, find some work and so on. Especially with an official job.

A tourist residence permit does not entitle you to work, and if you break the law, the consequences are severe. For official employment in Turkey you need a work visa, which is arranged by the employer.

It is easier to find work, for example, in the regions of Antalya, Alanya - and that is more for young people, to work in hotels, to work in travel companies, for example. But when a person is middle-aged and no longer in the "youth" category, they are unlikely to be invited to work in Turkey.

And so here comes to the front, specialties that can make money online. Who, for example, can teach English or do balance sheets online.

Or, let's say, beauty artists: nail specialists, hairdressers or, for example, pastry chefs! There are English pastry chefs who are doing well because they have found their niche.

So, if you are a financier, you can't expect to get a job in Turkey unless you work online, but if you have such an applied specialty, which many people, especially our compatriots who live here, need, it might be in demand and interesting. 

Jobs in Turkey in Travel & Hospitality

Well, that's only for young people! And you need to know at least that, English is not an option at all, it is desirable to speak some Turkish. It's a job with a salary of 300-600 dollars a month, when you can find a job, but more young people choose it. And in England, for example, everyone tries to come to London, because there is a lot of work. In Turkey, the feeling is that you have to go to Istanbul for work, but just as you do not recommend it very much? 

Working in Istanbul

If you are a Turk, Istanbul will certainly offer many more options for work than if you are a foreigner.

As foreigners have to get a work permit, they cannot work without one, so it turns out to be difficult. In other words, you can't expect to come and get a job right away without any problems.

But if you have some rare specialty in demand, which is really needed in this city, such as an engineer to work at a nuclear power plant, then you can count on a job here.

In any case, our people find themselves somehow: someone teaches children dancing, someone opens a photography centre, someone organizes pilates - so people are not completely unemployed here!

Advantages of Mersin

Quite recently, people have become interested of a new destination on the Mediterranean coast, the city of Mersin. It has really only been offered for the last 7-8 years on the market.

What is its main advantage? It is located right on the coast and the price of property in Mersin is now about two to two and a half times lower than in Antalya or Alanya.

So if you can't buy anything in Antalya or Alanya for 40,000 Euros near the sea, it is impossible, but you can do it in Mersin, for example. And at the same time it's a city with its universities, its schools, where one can feel comfortable and have the same infrastructure.

There is gas there, as in Antalya - this is important for those who want to feel comfortable in winter! 

Yes, there are still some flaws with the local airport, so to get to Mersin you have to fly either Istanbul - Adana or Antalya - Adana and then drive about an hour to Mersin.

But, it is getting more popular by the day and people are interested in Mersin not only for the comfortable life by the sea, but also as an investment! Prices there are only going to go up!

Besides, it's a big port city, one of the biggest seaside cities in Turkey, and the citrus shipments from Turkey mostly come from there.

So, for those who are thinking of doing some business, who have some experience related to the supply of fruits and vegetables, Mersin could be an interesting option, because it is a big port gateway for international trade. It could be interesting for those who are planning an active business and who know what they are doing. 

Other attractive cities and towns in Turkey

Let's take a brief look at other options for moving - the pros and cons of popular destinations.

Fethiye, Mugla province. A quiet, tranquil resort town on Turkey's southern Mediterranean coast. It is sparsely populated in the winter and mostly lives on tourism in the summer. The town is home to the famous beach of Çalış with the Caretta-Caret turtle reserve, and nearby is Oludeniz with its turquoise sea. Fethiye has low-rise buildings and English-speaking neighbourhoods and is often chosen by the Germans. 

Izmir is the third most populated city in Turkey. The city of culture and intellectuals, with a mild climate without stifling summer heat. Here you can earn good money by renting an apartment or villa by the sea, a permanent residence is chosen by those who value well-developed infrastructure. The beaches are just outside the city. It is difficult to obtain a tourist residence permit in Izmir, so foreigners coming here are mainly those who have bought property here, obtained a work visa, or got married to a Turkish citizen. 

Marmaris, Mugla province. A green tourist town in western Turkey on the shores of the Aegean Sea - bustling and cheerful in summer, tranquil in winter. It is mainly inhabited by foreigners who work remotely and are looking for a quieter place to live comfortably. There are diasporas of immigrants from EU countries.

Bodrum, Mugla. From Bodrum to Kos (Greece), it's only an hour by ferry. The climate is not as hot as in Antalya. Bodrum is full of English speaking foreigners, who are attracted by the incredible mix of Greek, Ottoman, Byzantine and Roman cultural heritage. It is easy to see an ancient castle in Bodrum and the luxury boutiques next to it. 

Eskisehir is a major city in northwestern Turkey. It is a city of students, very beautiful and modern but with a carefully preserved historic centre. There are many parks, museums, fountains, a canal with gondolas, like in Venice, and an artificial beach in the centre. 

Kalkan is a small village on the Lycian coast, very quiet and very respectable, with a rather gated community. There are many expensive villas here and the atmosphere is rather reminiscent of Tuscany: narrow streets, small shops and cafes. Nearby is the incredibly beautiful beach of Kaputas. The British like to settle in Kalkan and this is where the prices are quoted in pounds.

Kash is a village on the Mediterranean Sea in Antalya. Instead of the usual beaches, there are carved platforms in the rock from which it is great to dive. There are many cafes, restaurants and coffee shops in Kash. It is often chosen by the Germans as a place to live.

Getting to know the locals

It is believed that when you move to a foreign country, it is better not to communicate in your native language, but to practice the new language with the locals! It is especially important for those who are engaged in business; they communicate mainly with Turks in Turkish.

A huge advantage is that Turks are totally open to communication, they are totally open to help and to communicate with strangers. You just have to make the first move!

And it doesn't matter if it's a Turk in Istanbul or a Turk in Antalya - they will still be open!

You just have to take into account that, of course, Istanbul, like any megalopolis, puts a mark on people - like in any big city, people are always running somewhere, always rushing somewhere, always need to get somewhere - it is not the same as in Alanya, for example.

Which city is best for finding a job, a comfortable life for families with children and for retirement living?

Let's say a young man goes to Turkey, has a university degree, wants to achieve ambitious goals, is ready to work, to rise, in general, wants more! Where should he go, to what city? 

Certainly, such people should at first count on having a financial safety cushion for at least a year. And then it does not matter what city. 

It all depends on a person's specialty. For example, where can a photographer or a person who can make quality videos find himself? It is better to choose, for example, Antalya and Alanya, where there are many of our compatriots. Here you can do photo shoots, for example, some commercials, including commercials for property developers, real estate agencies.

Or to offer something that the Turks can't.

For business, the choice of city will depend on what kind of business: if it's some textile factories and plants, then it's Istanbul. If it is, say, a business connected with agricultural products, then the agricultural centre is Antalya. All the tomatoes, cucumbers and so on come from here. If citrus fruits, it could be Mersin. There is no standard answer, it's all in the details, to be honest.

But what if it is a family with small children or if the father for example is earning money somewhere in England and the wife and children spend most of their time in Turkey? It's Antalya for sure, because children need clubs, schools, they need to go to university.  

Well, and if, on the contrary, the children have grown up, all fledged, a retired couple wants to quietly spend the best years of adult life?

Then the choice is wider! They can choose, for example, Alanya or again Antalya, it can be small resort towns such as Kemer, Side, Bodrum, Fethiye.

The only but: a person must be well aware that in Turkey, too, there is winter! There is also the heating in Turkey and many regions still do not have natural gas, for example in Fethiye or Alanya, which means that you cannot heat your house with gas and walk around in one shirt like you are used to in your homeland.

Big cities like Mersin or Antalya have gas.

The question here is whether you like comfort and whether it is important for you to keep warm during the winter and make your choice accordingly, which is actually a big choice, and that is great! And it is very encouraging that the Turks will help, it is very important! 

Yes, in matters of life the Turks can help, in business it's a little different, in business with the Turks you have to follow certain other rules, but when it comes to daily life, communication with people, the Turks will certainly help and meet you halfway!

If you were wondering about life in Turkey, adaptation in a new country, English-speaking society, work in Turkey, choice of cities and regions, subscribe to our YouTube channel!

And if you want to move to Antalya or buy property here and enjoy life by the sea, write us on WhatsApp +90 5374828423!

Alternatively you can follow us on Instagram and get the latest news from the professionals!

Further channels of communication with us are:

Telegram, V Kontakte, Yandex Zen