Istanbul is a world capital, the only city in the world that combines two continents and geography that hosts the world's largest empires. From this world, every culture has left a mark on this colorful city that hosts thousands of different people and cultures. There are many sights, museums, and places to see in this vast metropolis, which is above the eyes of everyone.
Have you ever been in Istanbul? If you answer like “No” it means you missed really important things for your travel because it is the only city in the world that combines two continents and geography that hosts the world's largest empires. It is possible to find various marks of past civilizations. Also, there are not only historical signs and buildings, but also İstanbul still has many different people, lives, and cultures today. So, if you have not added İstanbul to your travel route yet, still not late! Come and feel the diversity.
Sultanahmet, Hagia Sophia, Topkapı Palace Blue Mosque, Grand Bazaar, Maiden’s Tower, Basilica Cistern, and Galata Tower comes first as the most popular historical regions and tourist areas in Istanbul.
Must Places to Visit in Istanbul, Historical Places in Istanbul
Istanbul, cradle of Byzantine and Ottoman Empire, Istanbul, which has traces of the history that millions of tourists visit every year, is the only city in the world that bridges between Asia and Europe.
The most popular tourist areas such as Hagia Sophia, Topkapi Palace, Basilica Cistern, Blue Mosque, Grand Bazaar, Galata Tower, Maiden's Tower and many more, you can witnessed the traces of the historical buildings.
Istanbul Bosphorus Strait
Istanbul has a really significant location and atmosphere to unite two different continents. İt is the only city in the world that making this combining between Asia and Europe. So Bosphorus must-see place in Istanbul.
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Hagia Sophia Museum
8th Wonders of the World Hagia Sophia Museum
With the charming architecture: Hagia Sophia. The mystery of this museum still curiosity. The historic origin of Hagia Sophia is based on Byzantine Constantin days.
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Topkapi Palace
The Ottoman Empire is one of the empires of the world that has reached the largest borders and has maintained its dominance for centuries. If you want to feel and understand how Ottoman Empires and their family lived, Topkapı Palace is the best place to see that. The palace is waiting to be seen in the Historic Peninsula with all its glory.
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Grand Bazaar
It is one of the oldest shopping places in the world.
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Basilica Cistern
The cistern, built to meet the water needs of the palace in the Byzantine period, still impresses with its eye-catching columns and the Medusa statue.
To day concerts held in the Basilica Cistern, which also hosts many art events today, open the doors of a magical world to the participants.
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Galata Tower
Galata Tower, eye of Istanbul.
According to a legend; If the Romans, for the first time together, come to the Galata Tower, a man and a woman marry each other. But if one of the couples went to the Galata Tower before, it is believed that this amulet would be broken.
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Dolmabahce Palace
The Dolmabahce Palace, built by the Ottoman Sultan Abdülmecit in 1856 on the shore of the Bosphorus, is one of the most important landmarks of Istanbul with its magnificent view bearing traces of Western architecture.
The largest of the palace in Turkey, Ataturk's also have a different moral value because it is the venue where he spent her final days.
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Beylerbeyi Palace
Beylerbeyi Palace, which has an impressive structure with its wooden carving and gold embroidery workmanship, is one of the most spectacular buildings in Istanbul.
Beylerbeyi Palace also hosted foreign state guests during the Republican period.
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Maiden's Tower
There are countless legends about the beautiful Maiden's Tower…
The tower, built on a small island, is about 18 meters high. The building, which consists of 5 floors, is the last Byzantine structure in Üsküdar District. The tower was named after Damalis, the wife of King Chares of Athens in ancient times.
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Rumeli Fortress
The Rumeli fortress, which is a magnificent structure with its three big towers and city walls, is located opposite the Anadolu fortress at the point where the two shores of the Bosphorus are at the very closest point.
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Sultanahmet Hippodrome (Horse Square)
The historical area, which is a real hippodrome where horse races took place during the Byzantine period, is now known as the Horse Square in Sultanahmet Square.
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Suleymaniye Mosque
The mastery of Mimar Sinan, who printed the seal with majestic works of magnificence, draws attention with the architectural subtleties he applied in the work of Suleymaniye Mosque, which is the work of a journeyman.
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Eyüp Sultan Mosque
Eyüp Sultan Mosque and Mausoleum where the water flowing from its fountain is considered sacred and its courtyard is decorated with a century-old plane tree is considered to be one of the greatest historical legacies left by the Ottoman Empire to Istanbul.
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Chora Church
Chora Church, the ancient Greek urban (rural area) in the sense of the word Khora emerged with the name of the Turkish. Mosaics and frescoes in the Kariye Museum, XIV. century, the most beautiful examples.
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The Egyptian Bazaar
The Spice Bazaar is one of the most established shopping areas in Istanbul. Due to the building structure, the tourist bazaar has become one of the commercial centers.
Spices and herbs, believed to be a panacea, were sold throughout history.
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Historical Places at Sultanahmet Square
The historical area, which is a real hippodrome where horse races took place during the Byzantine period, is now known as the Horse Square in Sultanahmet Square.
The Obelisk, the Serpentine Column and the German Fountain over which Egyptian hieroglyphics are located in this area. Ibrahim Pasha Palace, which you can visit today as a Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts, is also at this square.
Columns;
Obelisk , the most famous among these three storied monuments, was brought from Egypt in 390 and erected in its present place at full thirty-one days. Obelisk, BC. It was built around 1450 for one of the Egyptian Pharaohs. The Snake Column, which adorns the square, was a talisman, represented by the three serpents brought from the Temple of Delphi in Apollon, to protect the city from insects. The last monument on the square is the Thirty-two-meter-high Knitted Obelisk, which looks extremely impressive and overlook the hill.
Pargali Damat İbrahim Pasha's Palace
Today, it is used as the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Art and took its name from Damat Ibrahim Pasha, the second vizier of Suleyman the Magnificent. This historical palace, where you can see many beautiful examples of Turkish and Islamic Art, is the first Turkish museum in this area.
German Fountain
German Emperor II Wilhelm built the German fountain as gift to Istanbul as a sign of Turkish-German friendship.
The fountain, which was built in Germany, was combined in Istanbul and opened in 1901.
Sultanahmet Mosque (Blue Mosque)
One of the most important works of the 17th century, the Blue Mosque is a masterpiece built by Mimar Sinan in his understanding of architecture by Sedefkar Mehmet Aga, the principal architect of the period, on the orders of Sultan I.Ahmet. The construction of the mosque, which lasted 7.5 years, started in 1609 and was completed in 1617.
Because the mosque is decorated with blue, green and white colored Iznik tiles, and because its half domes and large dome are decorated with blue weighted pencils, the Europeans are called the Blue Mosque.
Hagia Sophia
8th Wonders of the World Hagia Sophia;
Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, which is based to the Byzantine Constantin days. After the conquest of Istanbul, the place where the first Friday prayer was performed was Ayasofya. It was converted into a mosque but is now visited as a museum.
Istanbul Archeology Museum
The Istanbul archaeological museum is one of the largest museums in the world with over one million works of various cultures. Archaeological Museum, the oldest museum building was built in Turkey was established in late 19th century painter and museum director Osman Hamdi Bey as the Empire Museum and was opened to visitors on June 13, 1891.
Topkapi Palace
The Ottoman Empire is one of the empires of the world that has reached the largest borders and has maintained its dominance for centuries. Topkapi Palace , where sultans and their families live, is waiting to be seen in the Historic Peninsula with all its glory.
Aya Irini Church
Aya İrini , located in Istanbul Topkapi Palace's courtyard, next to Hagia Sophia and contemporary with it, is the largest Byzantine church in Istanbul, which has not been converted into a mosque.
Foundations Carpet Museum
It has one of the world's richest carpet collections . Seljuk and the Ottoman period with an old Islamic tradition of mosques, tombs and mosques donated to the historical and artistic value of the carpets exhibited in the museum, with their own specific patterns in the various weaving centers of Anatolia from the 14th century until the 20th century with the most precious carpets and prayer rugs Iranian and Caucasian carpets are also on display.
Sogukcesme Street
Sogukcesme Street , an open-air museum. Between the Hagia Sophia Mosque and the Topkapı Palace, there are twelve bay windows, wooden houses, and a Roman cistern, on the street of Soğukçeşme; There is also the mansion of the bathhouse and the minaret of Naziki.
Little Hagia Sophia Mosque
Little Hagia Sophia church was built by Byzantine Emperor Justinian and his wife Theodora as a church in the 530s and converted to a mosque after the conquest of Istanbul.
Istanbul Travel Tips
Istanbul: First-time Visitors
Important informations that you should know before travelling to Istanbul;
Before photographing the locals, you should definitely ask permission from them.
When you enter a house or a mosque, you should definitely take off your shoes. You should be very careful when choosing clothes before visiting the religious places of Istanbul. Short skirts, shorts and open hills are not suitable for city observations.
You can drink alcohol only in specially designated areas.
Don't forget to bargain in markets and bazaars. Sellers increase the price for tourists.
Before you buy anything, you should ask prices few different shops or search from the internet.
Do not drink tap water.
Stay away from street vendors.
Stay away from the vendors selling tours on the street, if you want to buy a tour, you should buy from the internet or tour agency.
Always have your passport with you.
Carry cash with you.
When you buy a plane ticket to go to Istanbul, choose Atatürk Airport because it is much closer to the city center. Sabihagökcen airport is far from the city center, so the transfer fee will be higher.
Air in Istanbul is generally hot during the summer months. Choose casual and sports outfits. Pick up a few winter clothes for the other months.
Don't go to every restaurant to eat and drink, usually choose the local people's choice or ask the local people for help.
Be sure to check the voucher when paying at the restaurant.
General Informations About Istanbul
Currency: Turkish Lira (TL)
Electricity in Istanbul: In Turkey the power plugs and sockets are of type F. The standard voltage is 220 V and the standard frequency is 50Hz.
Credit Cards in Istanbul: In Istanbul, you can use Visa, Mastercard, Maestro and American Express.
Using traveller's checks in Istanbul: Exchanging Traveller’s Checks in Istanbul is difficult and will come with very high fees.
Foreign currency valid in Istanbul: Dollar, Euro and Pound is most popular.
Lifestyle: Istanbul lifestyle is a vivid mosaic; juxtaposing the Occident and the Orient, the ancient and the modern.
Cuisine: Istanbul cuisine is renowned as one of the world's best. You can taste eastern and western dishes.
Weather: There are four seasons in Istanbul. (summer, spring, autumn and winter)
Time Zone: UTC +3 hours all of the period
