Prepaid SIM cards can be bought (for around 30 TL with 5TL usable balance) at Vodafone, Avea or Turkcell kiosks at the airport or in shops around town. They might ask to make a copy of your passport.
However, to be able to use your phone you need to get it unlocked for use in Turkey. This process takes up to 4 days so getting a SIM isn't really practical for people on a short visit.
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Istanbul
Where To Stay & Best Hotels in Istanbul - updated May 2024
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Istanbul Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.