Old City Sultanahmet
0.2 miles from city centre
Begin your adventure in Sultanahmet Square, gateway to the historic centre. In Topkapi Palace, Byzantine artefacts sparkle through the display cases as light beams in. Hagia Sophia’s mosaics are time worn, reflecting the history of a space that has been both mosque and church across 1.5 millennia. Zany bars and cosy cafes beckon you.
Places to stay from £4 per night
Taksim
2 miles from city centre
Street culture, energetic cafés and antique shops with quirky treasures await in this cosmopolitan district. Dandies and divas will have a field day at the boutiques on Istiklal Avenue. Concerts, cinemas and exhibition centres provide family-friendly entertainment, while trendy clubs and bars bring out the bold and the beautiful after dark.
Places to stay from £4 per night
Ortakoy
4 miles from city centre
Ortakoy’s residents are youthful and cosmopolitan. Among the swathes of modern art galleries, you'll find eateries tempting you with delicious local delicacies. One of the area's oldest buildings is the Turkish Bath, followed by the neo-Baroque Ortakoy Mosque. Take a cruise across the Bosphorus, or shop for trinkets at the emporiums.
Places to stay from £10 per night
Kadikoy
3.8 miles from city centre
To stay in Kadıköy means full-scale immersion in Turkish culture, and it’s a fast ferry ride from this residential district to the city’s prime attractions. Elaborate wooden houses that creak with the passing of time and remnants of the Roman Empire await as you wander the streets. Indulge in mouth-watering Turkish Delight from Akustik Market.
Places to stay from £5 per night
Besiktas
4 miles from city centre
Fragments of the Ottoman Empire lie in this coastal district. Picnic or play in the flower-filled groves of Yildiz Park, followed by a walk toward Ortakoy – inviting cafes by day and plush clubs by night. Salute the sea at the Turkish Naval Museum, see and be seen in trendy Bebek and Kurucesme or crown your day at Dolmabahce Palace.
Places to stay from £10 per night
Sisli
3.3 miles from city centre
Sisli is a large district on the European side of Istanbul, near the Bosphorus Bridge. A mix of mosques, churches and synagogues make the area eclectic, while Trump Towers and Cevahir Shopping Mall are reminders of the growing tide of commercialism sweeping the area. The narrow streets of Nisantasi are loaded with boutiques and galleries.
Places to stay from £5 per night
Topkapi
1.9 miles from city centre
Take a decent pair of walking shoes to navigate the 5.5 km stretch atop the 8th-century City Walls of Constantinople. Be sure to spend some time at Kara Ahmet Pasha Mosque, a medieval centre of learning that contains painstakingly detailed mosaics. The area maintains its learned nature, on account of the scholarly cafés and student haunts.
Places to stay from £8 per night
Beyazit
0.7 miles from city centre
There’s a haze around the palaces, towers and gardens around Beyazit Mosque that gives the feeling of being lost in time. The mosque has stood proudly since 1506 and weathered many storms over its cut-stone exterior. The Grand Bazaar is filled with the sights, smells and sounds of an authentic Turkish market.
Places to stay from £5 per night
Asian Side
6.7 miles from city centre
The Asian side of Istanbul lives on the razor’s edge of the past and present. Kadıköy is a feast of scents and sound – In Moda, buy tapas-style food from a zany street vendor, then wander past hip tattoo parlours and street art for a street-eye view of hip urban living. Buy branded clothing on Bagdat Avenue, then dine out in style.
Places to stay from £5 per night
Straddling the border between Europe and Western Asia, Istanbul acts as an ancient crossroads of cultures, religions and civilisations.
Greek, Persian, Byzantine and Ottoman influences can be seen across the city. The mesmerising Hagia Sophia, for instance, stood for over 1,000 years as an ornate church before being converted into an Imperial Mosque, which it remained as for over half a millennia. And there’s Topkapi Palace, a lavish complex of halls, courtyards and terraces with commanding views over the Bosphorus Strait. Today, both structures are religious museums attracting millions of visitors every year.
The Blue Mosque is another glinting example of Byzantine-Ottoman fused architecture, with its domes, towering minarets and blue İznik tiles that adorn the interior. For a full view of the mosque’s design, enter through the crumbling remains of a Roman-era hippodrome in Sultanahmet Square.
Yet Istanbul’s oldest monuments could easily escape you. Deep beneath the ground are several hundred ancient cisterns, where water was once delivered via 20 kilometres of aqueducts from a local reservoir. The largest of these is the Basilica Cistern, which you can explore along raised wooden platforms.
Back on ground level, the Grand Bazaar will entice you with its maze-like network of craft stores and cosy teahouses. Go explore a little, before treating yourself to a Dürüm wrap on a street corner, or a mouthwatering meze in a bistro-style restaurant in Sultanahmet.
Tonight
From £9 per night
This weekend
From £18 per night
Next weekend
From £34 per night
Most popular time to visit | October–December |
Cheapest time to visit | January–March |
Local currency | € 10 = £8.55 |
Language | Turkish |
Average weekend price | £68 per night |
Average weekday price | £71 per night |
Typical stay | 2 nights |
Taksim Square
2.1 miles from city centre
Blue Mosque
0.2 miles from city centre
Topkapi Palace
0.6 miles from city centre
Grand Bazaar
0.4 miles from city centre
Hagia Sophia
0.3 miles from city centre
Istiklal Street
2 miles from city centre
Bosphorus Bridge
4 miles from city centre
Galata Tower
1.2 miles from city centre
Pierre Loti
3.8 miles from city centre
Suleymaniye Mosque
0.8 miles from city centre
Friendly cosmopolitan city with lots of history, culture and...
27 March 2024
Friendly cosmopolitan city with lots of history, culture and art. The transport system is great and very affordable. We spent 5 days there but could have stayed more. Each neighbourhood has something different to offer. People are very friendly. Many restaurants to choose from for all budgets. Loved Kadikoy for it's eclectic authenticity. Do take the ferry, the views are spectacular, especially at sunset.
What a wondrous city!
27 March 2024
What a wondrous city! Exotic, exciting, fun, full of verve, never seems to sleep! A walk along the Bosphorus, a visit to the spice market, celebrating Sufi romanticism, paying respects at enormous and splendid mosques, there's lots to see and do, and filled with super restaurants, excellent food and overall, great value for money!
Beautiful sites, tickets at entries to mosques are well over...
27 March 2024
Beautiful sites, tickets at entries to mosques are well over 25€ (too much) there are ones you can go in for free. Men are absolutely disgusting, they grab your hand and drag you inside to restaurants, give inappropriate “compliments” and the vendors try to scam you for the last dime, for understanding and new travelers I think I would be helpful to know- Shop drink- 20-35 Tl Bag of chips- 40 Tl One kg of baklava reasonably priced at maximum 600-650 Tl One magnet souvenir is 25 Tl anyone trying a higher price is trying to scam you. Bring comfortable shoes be prepared to walk a lot, not that much to see but you can go on a 1,5 boat ride for 100 Tl, the other boat toes range from 19€ to 90€ not any different. the corn 🌽 T the stalls for 30 Tl is absolutely the best, Cats are everywhere and they are very friendly, the bank employees airport employees will push you not say excuse me or anything, are not well mannered at all very entitled and unhelpful. Regular people are very friendly and nice, it is not a dangerous country to visit as a single woman Russian tourists are everywhere so basically all places understand some level of russian.
Istanbul is a bustling and dynamic metropolis.
27 March 2024
Istanbul is a bustling and dynamic metropolis. As well as it is beautiful and interesting. My tips for urban westerners: 1. If possible choose the airport Sabiha Gökcen airport on the Asian Side. For 0.70 US/Euro yo get a one-line metro all the way in to the city (Kadiköy port). 2. Get the IstanbulKart for public transportation. Boats, Trams, Metro, cable cars and buses. Easy to top up when needed. $/€ 2-5 a day spent in my case, and we used it for 4-6 trips a day. 3. You like a cold beer on occassions? Kadiköy, Karaköy and Besiktas is where you will find bars. In Old town and the very muslim Üsükar port, most restaurants don't serve alcohol. 4. Karaköy is a good hub/area to stay in. Seaport area of Kadiköy is the nicest part, but a bit far from the landmarks. 5. In Taksim square and along Istikal street prices are higher than elsewhere and there are plenty of scammers. An initially priced $3 ice cream ended up being $12 instead. Cone was not included and pistaggio flavour was 150% extra. Just keep calm and smile, you will be scammed here.
We enjoy the vibrancy and bustle of the place.
26 March 2024
We enjoy the vibrancy and bustle of the place. The frequent trams are a brilliant and cheap way to get around. Entrance fees to the major tourist spots were dearer than expected. We booked a guided walking tour through a part of the city which was unknown to us, Fener and Balat (Fenerwalks). It was excellent value and conducted by a very knowledgeable and personable young lady, Kubra. we recommend it highly. A bit of Istanbul history unknown by any of us.
Istanbul is like London on steroids!
24 March 2024
Istanbul is like London on steroids!! Very exciting city absolutely full of history. You definitely need 4 nights and 5 days to experience everything the city has to offer. You can fit in (if you’re fit!) 2 walking tours (I would definitely recommend one that takes you over to Asia) The Grand Baazar. Hagia Sophia and several other mosques. This one is payable and is worth purchasing a joint ticket to the museum as well. Blue Mosque (free). Cistern Basilica (fresh water system). Topkapi Palace. Just generally walking around and exploring will take you all interesting corners of the city. I particularly liked the respect for street animals which are looked after by the state. I felt safe and comfortable at all times.
Old City Sultanahmet, Istanbul
From £112 per night
Old City Sultanahmet, Istanbul
From £181 per night
Old City Sultanahmet, Istanbul
From £115 per night
Old City Sultanahmet, Istanbul
From £239 per night
Old City Sultanahmet, Istanbul
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