Taxis (Flash 90 photo/ Olivia Fitosi)
Did you think this only happens with us? Many Israelis continue to wash the streets of Istanbul since the warming of relations between Israel and Turkey and the return of Israeli airlines to the beloved destination, but after many years there is something that reminds blue-and-white tourists of the less pleasant side of vacationing in the neighboring country.
Due to the difficult economic situation in Turkey, which is only getting worse every year, the Turkish lira has crashed against the shekel and the dollar, and taxi drivers who are not ready for their livelihood to suffer and therefore take advantage of tourists to make money in a crooked way enter this niche.
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According to evidence, the drivers do not operate a meter for passengers and charge exorbitant prices. It turns out that the sting has become widespread and the tourists are paying heavy prices. The situation is so difficult that the drivers in Turkey are looking to drive only tourists and therefore the locals have a hard time finding a taxi.
“In the last few weeks, I have been receiving many complaints from Israeli tourists about the taxi drivers who sting them endlessly,” told Mako, an Israeli who lives in Istanbul and is a tour guide in the city. “There are quite a few Israelis who this is their first time in Turkey and they have had unpleasant experiences. In every country there are taxi drivers who sting, but in Istanbul it is on a different level, what they do and without shame.”
Tourism from Israel also suffered such a sting: “Every driver we stopped charged a price and did not want to use a meter. When we stopped drivers, they took $150 from us for a 20-minute drive to one of the malls in the city center,” Ilanit repeated. “We paid. We didn’t know that for that price we could also hire a driver for a whole day. On another ten-minute drive to the hotel, we paid $50.”
Another couple revealed: “My wife surprised me for my birthday with a flight to Istanbul. The taxi drivers ruined our trip. Each time they stung us with a different price. One time they charged $120, another time $130. They took advantage of the fact that we don’t know the city and that this is our first time Here. We will definitely return to Istanbul, but this time we won’t be stung,” Yoav pointed out.
What do the locals recommend to do? “The metro in Istanbul is really convenient once you understand how it works. If the tourists don’t take taxis then the drivers will stop stinging. They only sting tourists because they won’t dare to do it to locals who will complain against them to the police.”
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