I've traveled to Turkey more than 10 times over the last 20 years and never needed a visa. So, I was very surprised when 2 of our traveling companions called me from the airport in a bit of a panic saying the gate agent wouldn't let them on the plane without their Turkish visas.
After a quick search on the State Department website, which has all the current visa information for Americans traveling abroad, I discovered that yes, indeed, Turkey had started requiring visas in April of 2014.
Fortunately, you can easily get a visa online in a matter of minutes by going to www.evisa.gov.tk/en/ and following their simple process. Using my friends iPad at the airport and my computer at home, we soon had their visas and they were off to Istanbul.
So, if you're planning a visit to Turkey, which is one of the great tourist destinations of the world, be sure you get your visa before you try to board a flight to Istanbul. And, from now on, I will be checking each country we plan to visit in advance just in case there's been a change in visa requirements.
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