Winter Holiday in Turkey

Winter programmes in Turkey are gathered almost entirely in Istanbul, and that is no accident: the coast runs at half strength in December and January, the hotels of Antalya close for the season, while the city on the strait works all year and in the New Year days only comes alive. Hence the make-up of what is on offer — the evening of the thirty-first on the water, and day trips to where the snow lies.

There are several New Year formats. The Bosphorus cruise with dinner lasts about four hours: a buffet, live music, a programme with belly dance, midnight met on deck opposite the lit mosques. The versions differ mainly by drinks — with alcohol and without — and by the size of the vessel: there are large boats for hundreds of guests and a private yacht of some seventeen metres, taken by one party. Club and waterfront restaurant parties are sold separately.

Snow is closest to Bursa. The city is about two and a half hours away across the Sea of Marmara, and from there a cable car climbs to Uludağ, above two thousand metres; it is noticeably colder up top than below, and skis and boots are hired on the spot. Worth knowing: New Year cruises sell out a month or six weeks ahead and the price does not drop towards the end of December, while the cable car closes in strong wind.