If you’re traveling to Turkey, you should get used to making a reservation in Turkish because not all businesses have fluent English-speaking employees.
As a traveler in a foreign country, you’ll be making lots of reservations for various purposes, such as staying in a hotel and getting a table at a famous restaurant. Unfortunately, some businesses can’t offer their services in English, this is why you should learn how to make a reservation in Turkish.
After reading this blog post, you’ll be able to make a reservation by following these four steps and using the Turkish phrases mentioned below!
Making A Reservation In Turkish
Making a reservation in Turkish typically consists of four steps: greeting, requesting a reservation, providing details, and confirming the reservation or canceling it. Let’s get into the details below!
1. Greeting
Whether you’re talking face to face or on the phone, always start the conversation with a polite greeting. Here are some Turkish greetings you can use:
| English | Turkish |
|---|---|
| Hello | Merhaba |
| Hi | Selam |
| Good evening | İyi akşamlar |
| Good morning | Günaydın |
| Good afternoon | İyi öğlenler |
| Good day | İyi günler |
2. Requesting A Reservation
After you greet each other, the receptionist will ask you, “Size nasıl yardımcı olabilirim?” meaning, “How can I help you?” You can state your purpose in a short sentence. You may want to reserve a hotel room, a table at a restaurant, or a ticket.
Here are some phrases you can use depending on your situation:
| English | Turkish |
|---|---|
| I want to reserve a room. | Bir oda ayırtmak istiyorum. |
| I want to make a ticket reservation. | Bilet rezervasyonu yapmak istiyorum? |
| I want to reserve a table. | Bir masa ayırtmak istiyorum. |
| We’d like to make a reservation for a group. | Grup rezervasyonu yapmak istiyoruz. |
| I would like to make a reservation for tonight. | Bu akşam için bir rezervasyon yaptırmak istiyorum. |
| Can I reserve a place for tomorrow? | Yarın için yer ayırtabilir miyim? |
| Can I reserve a table for the upcoming weekend? | Gelecek hafta sonu için bir masa rezervasyonu yapabilir miyim? |
| Can I reserve a spot for dinner? | Akşam yemeği için yer ayırtabilir miyim? |
| I’d like to reserve a place for an event. | Etkinlik için yer ayırtmak istiyorum. |
3. Providing Details (Date, Time, Number Of People)
After you clarify your purpose, the receptionist will ask you for details about the reservation, like the date, time, and number of people. Here are some useful Turkish phrases you can use when giving details:
| English | Turkish |
|---|---|
| What is the date? | Tarih nedir? |
| What time? | Saat kaçta? |
| For how many people? | Kaç kişi için? |
| How many people are in your party? | Kaç kişilik bir grup olacak? |
| How many people? | Kaç kişilik? |
| For two people, please. | İki kişilik lütfen. |
| At 8 o’clock, please. | Saat sekizde lütfen. |
| I am going to stay two weeks. | İki hafta kalacağım. |
| Check-in | Giriş |
| Check-out | Çıkış |
| Double room | İki kişilik oda |
| Single room | Tek kişilik oda |
4. Confirming, Modifying, Or Canceling The Reservation
When you have all the details, it’s a good idea to confirm the reservation to make sure there’s no misunderstanding. After making the reservation, you may want to change the date and time or cancel it for some reason. You know, things happen!
Here are some useful phrases you can use in case you need to change or cancel the reservation:
| English | Turkish |
|---|---|
| Can you confirm my reservation? | Rezervasyonumu doğrulayabilir misiniz? |
| I need to change the time/number of people. | Saat/kişi sayısını değiştirmem gerekiyor. |
| Can I make a reservation for another date? | Başka bir tarih için rezervasyon yapabilir miyim? |
| Unfortunately, I need to cancel my reservation. | Maalesef rezervasyonumu iptal etmem gerekiyor. |
| Can I make a reservation for another day instead? | Başka bir gün için rezervasyon yapabilir miyim? |
Example Turkish Dialogue
Now, here’s a fictional dialogue of making a reservation so you can see how the phrases we’ve mentioned work in context:
Recepcionist: Merhaba, ben otel X’den Elif. Size nasıl yardımcı olabilirim? (Hello, I’m Elif from Hotel X. How can I help you?)
You: Merhaba, Elif Hanım. Akşam yemeği için otelinizin restorantında masa ayırtmak istiyorum. (Hi, Miss Elif. I’d like to reserve a table for a dinner at your hotel’s restaurant.)
Recepcionist: Tabi ki. Hangi tarih ve saat için rezervasyon yaptırmak istiyorsunuz? (Sure. What date and time do you want to make a reservation for?)
You: Yarın akşam saat 7’de. (At 7 o’clock tomorrow night.)
Recepcionist: Kaç kişi olacaksınız? (How many people will there be?)
You: İki kişi. (Two people.)
Recepcionist: Tamamdır. Yarın akşam saat 7 için masanız rezerve edildi. Başka bir isteğiniz var mı? (Alright. Your table is reserved for 7 o’clock tomorrow night. Is there anything else I can help with?)
You: Hayır, teşekkür ederim. İyi akşamlar. (No, thank you. Good evening.)
Recepcionist: Rica ederim. Size de iyi akşamlar. (You’re welcome. Good evening to you, too.)
If you want to learn conversational Turkish, Ling can teach you useful daily phrases like these! You can download the Ling app from the App Store or Play Store now and get a free 7-day trial!
Ready To Make A Reservation In Turkish?
Making reservations in a foreign language may be overwhelming, especially on the phone. But if you already know what kind of conversation you should have and know the useful Turkish phrases, there’s nothing to be nervous about.
Also, if you’re going to stay in Turkey for a while, you should check out Ling’s Turkish blog to get to know the Turkish culture and language better!
See you in the next post! Hoşçakalın (goodbye)!
