How to Get a Sim Card in Antalya

Getting a sim card in Antalya is relatively easy to do and cheap if you do it right.  You can be setup with a local plan and plenty of minutes in about a half hour. 

What you will need.

• An unlocked phone (you can check here with your IMEI).
• Your passport.

Here are the three main providers of cel phone plans in Antalya:

• Vodafone
• Turkcell
• Turk Telekom

There are smaller providers that are slightly cheaper, but if you want a reliable service that just works then I would recommend picking one of those three.  Turkcell has the best reputation in my circle of friends. Their prices are reasonable and in case you need support, their stores are everywhere.

The nice thing about Antalya is that it is a revolving door of tourists.  The more popular cel service providers in Antalya are used to this and it's not unusual for tourists to walk in speaking only a foreign language. 

I recommend following these steps:

1. Walk in to any Turkcell store.  But be sure it is a genuine Turkcell store.  Their are many other stores that sell sim cards, but will charge a premium.  See the picture below.  It must have the logo above the store shown in the picture below.

This is one of the larger Turkcell stores that always has someone who speaks English.

2. As for a prepaid plan.  You must provide your passport and an unlocked phone.  The sim card costs the equivalent of about 15 USD.

TIP: Purchasing your sim card at the airport will cost you about 25% more.  But is that really a surprise? Pay the local price Turks pay in the city.

3. Verify your internet works before leaving.  The reason is that sometimes foreign phones need their APN settings tweaked. The representative at the store will know.  Here they are in case you need them.

TIP: Your phone will only work for 120 days in this way.  You can return and monthly top up your plan, but beyond this, there is no guarantee that your phone will work.  Turkey will block your phone after this.  The reason is that they charge high tariffs on imported phones and they can ensure private people do not import them for resale.  But this can be overcome in another article I will publish.