11 replies to this topic

[roxysnonie]

hi all, well i have a shipload of crews from a cruise ship which travel twice a month to izmir, and was wondering where i could find cellphone wholesaler, or a store which sells "unlocked" phones.

help would be appreciated. thanks!

[Cukurbagli]

Hi Roxysnonie, welcome to Turkey Central. Any of the cellphone shops and most big supermarkets will sell unlocked phones for use with a pay as you go system sim card (Hazirkart) available in the same shop usually. The customer will need to take their passport with them and phones typically start from about ninety Lira for a simple phone that makes calls all the way up to all singing all dancing things for six or seven hundred Lira. They should ask for a phone for use with a Hazirkart (pronounced hazerkart).

[roxysnonie]

thanks for the reply.
we are near the cruise port, any locations nearby?

Edited by Ben Densin, 16 May 2010 - 05:10 AM.

[Cukurbagli]

Sorry I don't know Izmir well, but if you ask at the offices in the port someone will know. Any biggish branch of Migros, Arcelik or similar should have stock. Depends on how many you want of course.

[Ken]

Me and several other Turkey Central members live in Izmir, in fact the window I'm looking out of overlooks the port where the cruise ships come in.

Before I do any research, could you tell me how many cell phones you need? I'll send you a private message with a question or two about what you need.

[roxysnonie]

been to downtown, are the fones what they really are, or clones?

[Cukurbagli]

If they're in sealed boxes and it's a real shop they're ok.

[roxysnonie]

real shops? but there's lots downtown! which one?

[Ken]

Probably closest to the harbor is a shopping street called "Kibris Sehitleri." If you catch a taxi, ask for "Sevinc Pastanesi" (pronounced "seh vinch"). Sevinc is a well-known landmark to the Taxi drivers, and it's at a place where two pedestrianized shopping streets meet... thy form a "V," and Sevinc is right at the point of the "V." There are several smaller cell phone shops on the pedestrian road along the right of Sevinc, and I think there is one or two on the road to the left of it as well.

If you want to go farther, you can go to Best Buy, I received a PM from you and described how to go there.

You can also go to the Carrefour Mall in Cigli (pronounced like "chilly", tell a taxi driver Carrefour, he'll know it), but it's about a 25 minute drive.

[roxysnonie]

thanks for the reply. been to best buy! damn it was far!!! just hoping its cheaper in Sevinc...

[Gwydion]

Do you have any recommendations for companies to use for a sim card and "pay as you go data plans"?

I'm going to bring a "world phone" (unlocked) with me from Canada, and I'd like to be able to send/receive email etc while we're travelling.

Any suggestions?

[Abi]

Gwydion if you go into a Turkcell or Vodaphone shop they will be able to sort you out with a sim card. You will need to take your passport with you as well.