Suitable clothing for women visiting Turkey?

[Trumble]

Hi,

Looking for a little advice for my wife and step-daughter. They are taking a holiday in Turkey later in the year (sadly I'm stuck at home with work commitments) and want to take clothing for general use that will be considered suitably respectable (as non-muslims) to the locals anywhere they happen to visit (not just the 'touristy' bits), including historic mosques and such.

Can anybody suggest what they might buy, and any online source they might buy it (UK) as we seem to have nothing locally? Ideally whatever they get will be both suitably 'modest' and loose and comfortable in hot weather.

Thanks.

 

[Perseveranze]

Well, not exactly an answer (all I know is, that the dressing would need to be modest), but your wife/daughter will definitely love Istanbul (if they visit there). Recently a friend of mine went, said it was amazing (particularly the mosques, and the atmospheric adhaan) and mentioned the people were really friendly there.

 

[جوري]

try this:
http://www.aabcollection.com/
or this
http://hijabhouseonline.com.au/
or this:
http://www.shukronline.com/
or this:
http://www.inayahcollection.com/?referrer=CNWR_20002781355333138

I agree with br. Per - it is just dressing modest so they wouldn't be harassed or stick out like a sore thumb which can happen anywhere.. somehow unscrupulous people can tell the out of towners even here in NY which is otherwise a melting pot.. btw Turkey is a strange amalgamation of east & west.. It was very interesting to me and I was there eons ago when I was 13

 

[ardianto]

I never went Turkey, just seen photos, videos, and read news about its people. From what I know the Turkish practicing Muslims are moderate, the other who are non-practicing are secular. In Muslim community like this, modest clothes according Western standard is acceptable.

 

[Trumble]

Thanks for the replies. No personal experience of Turkey as none of us have been there before, but we had heard from others that acceptable dress can vary considerably almost on a street by street basis. Both of them are quite happy to conform to local dress standards as they are both the types who would rather observe and absorb another culture and its history rather than sit on a beach all day.

The Mrs is already browsing those links.. I can see we will have to agree a budget early! Unfortunately, when it comes to money she runs rings round me.. :embarrass.

 

[Muhammad]

Hello Trumble,

I'm not an expert on Turkey on either, but it seems that there is a lot of variance in what can be worn. The main issue is when entering Mosques. It doesn't have to be something special that needs to be bought. The clothing just needs to cover areas like the legs, body and upper arms, so it might be a long dress, long-sleeved shirts etc (and probably a headscarf). I read that in some of the more popular Mosques, attendants give out robes which can be borrowed for free:
http://www.turkeytravelplanner.com/Religion/mosque_etiquette.html

I hope your family have a good trip.