Top Ten Tips
by Şerif Yenen
For almost 25 years I have shared the natural, cultural and historical riches of Istanbul and Turkey with guests from all over the world. For me, the intercultural dialogue makes tour guiding one of the most satisfying and attractive of professions.
Istanbul is one of the most unique cities in the world, where one can observe the diverse daily life in a setting of ancient history and natural beauty. The people of Istanbul make up a cultural mosaic of different national, ethnic, cultural and religious origins. You can observe the riches of both Turkey and the world in Istanbul, due to this diversity. International cultural, artistic and sporting events, distinguished hotels and restaurants, nightclubs, conference centers, concerts, theaters and cinemas can suit every visitor’s taste from any walk of life.
Istanbul is now ready to welcome a greater number of guests than ever before. I would recommend that guests stay for a period of time that would enable them to experience our vast natural, cultural and historical world heritage. As a tour guide from Istanbul, I wish to share information that will enhance your visit, and I prepared these suggestions to fulfill this wish. I just hope that it serves to help you who are visiting Istanbul now and in the years to come.
Mr. Yenen was born in Ödemiş – Izmir in 1963. He graduated from Kuleli Military High School in Istanbul, earned a degree in English Philology at the University of Istanbul, in 1985, became an Army Officer, and taught English as a second language for a while.
Tour Guide
He quit the Army when he was a lieutenant and began as a tour guide in 1989, and has been working as a national tour guide with great enthusiasm ever since. He has held elected positions as chairman of the Istanbul Tourist Guides Guild (İRO), the Federation of Turkish Tourist Guides (TUREB) since 2002, the Tourist Guides Foundation (TUREV) between 2002 and 2009, and was an executive board member of the World Federation of Tourist Guide Associations (WFTGA) for two terms, from 2003 to 2007.
Travel Writer
While actively working as a tour guide, he also writes guide books, articles for travel magazines, and weekly columns on tourism for newspapers and websites.
Lecturer as a Turkey Travel Specialist
He gives comprehensive lectures about Turkey and Civilizations of Anatolia at schools, universities, museums, cruise ships, conventions and meetings, tour companies, etc. Among the places where he has lectured successfully several times are the Smithsonian Institute in Washington D.C., Boston University and Penn Museum in Philadelphia.
Tours with Şerif Yenen
He is an active licensed professional tour guide and prides himself on his ability to add personal touches to every tour he conducts. It is extremely important to him that his guests return home with experiences to remember: www.tourguideturkey.com
Mr. Yenen has many years’ experience in guiding tours all over Turkey as well as in Istanbul. As a Turkey Travel Specialist with contacts and years of experience, he is able to help travelers with their plans and itineraries. To find out more about him, visit Serif Yenen’s Wikipedia page at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serif_Yenen or his personal website: www.serifyenen.com
