Abu Dhabi or Istanbul?
3,040 km apart, in United Arab Emirates and Turkey. Each is scored month by month on the same ten years of climate readings, the public holidays that crowd it, and what the flight costs. This is where they part, and when.
Month by month
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abu Dhabi | 24° 1d | 26° 1d | 30° 1d | 35° 0d | 39° 0d | 42° 0d | 43° 0d | 43° 0d | 41° 0d | 37° 0d | 31° 0d | 27° 0d |
| Istanbul | 9° 10d | 10° 9d | 11° 9d | 15° 7d | 20° 6d | 25° 4d | 27° 3d | 28° 2d | 24° 6d | 20° 6d | 16° 8d | 12° 10d |
| Abu Dhabi, fare from Bengaluru | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ₹22,594 | — |
| Pick | Abu Dhabi | Abu Dhabi | Abu Dhabi | Istanbul | Istanbul | Istanbul | Istanbul | Istanbul | Istanbul | Istanbul | Abu Dhabi | Abu Dhabi |
Each cell is that destination's own verdict for the month — sweet spot, ok or avoid — with its typical daily high and its rainy days ("11d"). The pick goes to the better verdict; with the same verdict, to the higher score, unless the two are within a whisker of each other, when it is either. A month both would avoid is neither. A dot marks a busy month. Fares are the typical return from Bengaluru, in INR.
Before you go
- Cost of living — Abu Dhabi: moderate, about 63% of the United States; Istanbul: cheap, about 41% of the United States.
- Currency — Abu Dhabi: United arab emirates dirham; Istanbul: Turkish lira.
- Plugs — Abu Dhabi: type C and G, 220 V; Istanbul: type C and F, 230 V.
- Driving — Abu Dhabi: on the right; Istanbul: on the right.
- Travel advice — Abu Dhabi: no advice against travel; Istanbul: avoid all travel to parts.
Facts from Wikidata (CC0), the UK Foreign Office (Open Government Licence) and the World Bank. The advisory is written for British travellers; entry rules depend on your passport.
Between them
3,040 km as the crow flies, about 4h 37m in the air.Nonstop, about 2 a day · Etihad Airways, Turkish Airlines.
The flight time is estimated from the distance. A road, train or bus is named only where it was measured — flights from AeroDataBox, roads from OpenRouteService, timetables via Transitous — and none of it is a fare; the searches on each destination's page are where prices live.
Also compared
- Abu Dhabi or Cairo
- Abu Dhabi or Doha
- Abu Dhabi or Dubai
- Abu Dhabi or Muscat
- Istanbul or Cairo
- Istanbul or Doha
- Istanbul or Dubai
- Istanbul or Muscat
Every verdict here is the destination's own: ten years of climate readings, the public holidays that crowd it, and what the flight costs. The comparison is the difference between two pages, not a third opinion.