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LHR-NRT | 9 hr layover - solo, gay traveller... what to do

LHR-NRT | 9 hr layover - solo, gay traveller... what to do

Old Feb 23, 2015, 5:40 am
  #1  
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LHR-NRT | 9 hr layover - solo, gay traveller... what to do

Hi everyone,

I will be flying from LHR to NRT via IST on the 8th of August. My flight arrives around 4:30 and departs at 13:50. I would love to explore the city but as a solo, gay, 21-year-old male I am a bit apprehensive since I have never been to the city before and have heard that the state has taken a hard turn to the right, politically.

TK offers tours for passengers who are laying over but I don't fit in to one of the three tour time frames, unfortunately.

Suggestions? Should I avoid the city or shall I give it a go? Also worried with the language barrier i.e. metro signs in English, etc. that I might have a hard time getting around.

Tried finding a similar thread to post this query in but couldn't find any...

Thank you
totalrequest is offline  
Old Feb 23, 2015, 6:35 am
  #2  
 
Join Date: Aug 2011
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Istanbul is as safe as it gets for a gay traveller. In fact, you would be surprised at how many guys (wink wink) you can meet using certain phone apps. As it will be daytime clubs and bars are out of the question but sightseeing should be fine. Also, all subways / major bus routes have English announcements and signage.
leftyboarder is offline  
Old Feb 23, 2015, 6:15 pm
  #3  
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I`m not quite sure what being gay has anything to do with transiting through a city. Unless you are a swishy type who sashays down the boulevard and draws attention. Mods may want to transfer this to the Gay forum as the OP may get a better response.
djjaguar64 is offline  
Old Feb 23, 2015, 10:40 pm
  #4  
 
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In Turkey or any country there are no police at the border requiring you to identify your gender preference and attaching a big orange label to your clothes if you identify one way or the other. You could enjoy any city in the world as a single male traveler, there is no need to intentionally label yourself beyond that unless visiting nightclubs and bars at night in search of companionship. If you were traveling as a couple then I could understand a bit more concern but being single, no worries.

As for your other questions, Istanbul is pretty easy to navigate, they use the same alphabet so even signs not in English can be figured out (unlike where you're headed in Asia) but the metro and tram are clearly labeled and ticket machines are multi lingual. Your best bet if using the metro from the airport is to buy the Istanbul Karte from one of the vending machines at the airport metro station, they are much harder to find in the city. It'll allow you discounted fares on Metro, Tram, and Bus when using the prepaid card but also many buses are cashless so have to have a card to travel on those buses. There is usually one dedicated machine that sells them, the metro ticket machines also say they sell them but have never gotten one to work. As for spoken language, in the tourist areas, you'll find that almost all Turks speak English and perhaps other popular languages to get people into their business. Outside the tourist areas though, I've still managed to get by with basic communication with people in Turkey with a combination of gestures, body language, and English. Language barriers don't have to be as high as people make them to be, a smile and making an effort goes a very long way.

You'll have enough time to see some sites in the old city, that's where the majority of the key sites are concentrated, though the ones with ticket offices won't be open quite as early. If you go to the Hagia Sophia get your ticket early as there can be quite a queue once the tour groups start arriving. There are plenty of restaurants in the tourist districts of the old city to grab breakfast while you're waiting for stuff to open up.

Finally enjoy Istanbul, it's a beautiful city with great food around every corner.
dvs7310 is offline  
Old Feb 24, 2015, 4:26 pm
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I had a 10 hour layover in both direction going from YYZ-BKK and found it. Really easy to take the train from the airport and go into the city for a few hours. I spent several hours exploring the city, and then spent a few hours in the lounge before my flight. All signs were in English as well, so that won't be a problem. Truth be told though, I find part of the charm of traveling to a different place is being unable to communicate and having to gesture when talking to the locals. It adds to the exotic feel! It's a beautiful city and totally worth leaving the airport with a long layover. On the way there I went to the grand bazaar, and on the way back I hit the spice market, blue mosque and took a ferry across the water. I loved it.

As for being gay, while there are some places where that factors into the equation for safety reasons (I assume this is what you mean), I didn't feel uncomfortable at all. Of course I wasn't wearing a flashing neon sign on my forehead and just went about quietly exploring the city on my own, but I loved it and had no problems at all. Enjoy!!
Chiro1979 is offline  
Old Feb 25, 2015, 7:13 pm
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I think your biggest problem is that you'll love IST and be upset you only have a few hours to spend!

My biggest worry while in IST was that I was going to have to deal fending off one of the "Let's have a drink at this bar my new friend where I fleece you for $500" guys.
Went to one gay club and at first I was I was nervous to walk in this building's alleyway because of 2 rather sketchy looking big guys out front and then I realized those were the security guards there to protect ME (and turned out to be really nice).
JVPhoto is offline  
Old Feb 26, 2015, 7:03 am
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Originally Posted by JVPhoto
My biggest worry while in IST was that I was going to have to deal fending off one of the "Let's have a drink at this bar my new friend where I fleece you for $500" guys.
Yes that was also one of my worries about visiting Istanbul. Hence why I refrained from going out to bars at night. But also because I was pretty tired after a day full of sightseeing.
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Old Feb 26, 2015, 7:52 am
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Unlike other countries that conduct painful and torturous exams test for "chronic homosexuality" Turkey is not on the list.

I've had one visit to Istanbul (also traveling solo) and absolutely loved it. Didn't want to leave. People were friendly, easy to use public transit, and absolutely an abundance of gay life. Not to mention the sights and sounds throughout.

However, given your short visit, and assuming you're up for it:

I'd hustle over to a true no-frills Turkish Bathhouse. They're in abundance, so search online first for some top pics. I've now forgotten the one I went to, but definitely a fascinating cultural experience. Plus you will feel re-energized, with what feels like an entire layer of skin removed from your body during the deep cleanse. Good stuff.

Connecting with gay locals seems challenging in such a short amount of time.

Then again, if you have access to the TK lounge, you may not want to leave the airport at all =) Entire thread dedicated to this lounge
DBCme is offline  

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