Sultanahmet
Right in the heart of İstanbul’s historic center, this sacred Byzantine building remains an important symbol of power.
Must-see attractions in Istanbul
Sultanahmet
Topkapı is the subject of more colourful stories than most of the world's museums put together. Libidinous sultans, ambitious courtiers, beautiful…
Istanbul
İstanbul has more than its fair share of Byzantine monuments, but few are as drop-dead gorgeous as this mosaic- and fresco-laden church. Nestled in the…
Istanbul
The Süleymaniye crowns one of İstanbul's seven hills and dominates the Golden Horn, providing a landmark for the entire city. Though it's not the largest…
Sultanahmet
This subterranean structure was commissioned by Emperor Justinian and built in 532. The largest surviving Byzantine cistern in İstanbul, it was…
Sultanahmet
İstanbul's most photogenic building was the grand project of Sultan Ahmet I (r 1603–17), whose tomb is located on the north side of the site facing…
Istanbul
The colourful and chaotic Grand Bazaar is the heart of İstanbul's Old City and has been so for centuries. Starting as a small vaulted bedesten (warehouse)…
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Beyoğlu
There's plenty to see at this impressive museum, but its major draw is undoubtedly the 2nd-floor exhibition of paintings featuring Turkish Orientalist…
Sultanahmet
The city's foremost archaeological museum is housed in three buildings close to Topkapı Palace. There are many highlights, but the sarcophagi from the…
Kadıköy
An aromatic, colourful and alluring showcase of the best fresh produce in the city, the Kadıköy Pazarı is foodie central for locals and is becoming an…
Beyoğlu
The painstaking attention to detail in this fascinating museum/piece of conceptual art will certainly provide every amateur psychologist with a theory or…
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Museum of Turkish & Islamic Arts
Sultanahmet
This Ottoman palace was built in 1524 for İbrahim Paşa, childhood friend, brother-in-law and grand vizier of Süleyman the Magnificent. It now houses a…
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Istanbul
This splendid museum is dedicated to the history of transport, industry and communications in Turkey. Founded by the head of the Koç industrial group, one…
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Istanbul
Vividly coloured spices are displayed alongside jewel-like lokum (Turkish delight) at this Ottoman-era marketplace, providing eye candy for the thousands…
Beyoğlu
This lavishly funded and innovative museum has an extensive collection of Turkish art and also stages a constantly changing and uniformly excellent…
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Beyoğlu
Once called the Grand Rue de Pera but renamed İstiklal (Independence) in the early years of the Republic, Beyoğlu's premier boulevard is a perfect…
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Sultanahmet
The Byzantine emperors loved nothing more than an afternoon at the chariot races, and this rectangular arena alongside Sultanahmet Park was their venue of…
Patriarchal Church of St George
Istanbul
Dating from 1836, this church is part of the Greek Patriarchate compound. Inside the church are artefacts including Byzantine mosaics, religious relics…
Sultanahmet
Part of the Aya Sofya complex but entered via Babıhümayun Caddesi, these tombs are the final resting places of five 16th- and 17th-century sultans –…
Istanbul
This important complex marks the supposed burial place of Ebu Eyüp el-Ensari, a friend of the Prophet who fell in battle outside the walls of…
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Istanbul
Nestled in the middle of the busy Tahtakale shopping district, this diminutive mosque is a gem. Dating from 1560, it was designed by Sinan for Rüstem Paşa…
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Istanbul
The sultan to whom this mosque was dedicated (Süleyman the Magnificent's father, Selim I, known as 'the Grim') is famous for having killed two of his…
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Sultanahmet
Justinian and his wife Theodora built this little church sometime between 527 and 536, just before Justinian built Aya Sofya. You can still see their…
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Sultanahmet
Gülhane Park was once part of the grounds of Topkapı Palace, accessible only to the royal court. These days crowds of locals come here to picnic under the…
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Museum of Great Palace Mosaics
Sultanahmet
When archaeologists from the University of Ankara and Scotland's University of St Andrews excavated around the nearby Arasta Bazaar in the 1930s and 1950s…
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Istanbul
The great Sinan put his stamp on the entire city and this mosque, constructed in the 1560s next to the Edirnekapı section of the historic land walls, is…
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Beyoğlu
Housed in a building attached to the Neve Shalom synagogue near the Galata Tower, this museum was established in 2001 to commemorate the 500th anniversary…
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Sultanahmet
Coming up out of a hole in the ground, this strange column was once much taller and was topped by three serpents' heads. Originally cast to commemorate a…
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Istanbul
Built over a grand archway attached to the New Mosque, this small kasrı (pavilion) or mahfili (loge) dates from the same period and functioned as a…
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Istanbul
Opened to great fanfare in September 2019, the new home of the Koç Foundation's collection of contemporary art – one of the most impressive in Turkey –…
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Sultanahmet
In the centre of the Hippodrome, this immaculately preserved pink granite obelisk was carved in Egypt during the reign of Thutmose III (r 1549–1503 BC)…
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Sultanahmet
Near the northern end of the Hippodrome, this little gazebo with beautiful stonework was presented to the sultan and his people as a token of friendship…
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Sultanahmet
This historic arcade of shops was once part of the külliye (mosque complex) of the Blue Mosque (Sultanahmet Camii). Mosques built by the great and…
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Sultanahmet
After sacking Aya Sofya in 1204, the soldiers of the Fourth Crusade tore all the plates from this obelisk, at the Hippodrome's southern end, in the…
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Sultanahmet
The only remaining built section of the Hippodrome hints at how monumental the arena was. The level of galleries that once topped this section was damaged…
Istanbul
To experience İstanbul at its most magical, walk across the Galata Bridge at sunset. At this time, the historic Galata Tower is surrounded by shrieking…
Istanbul
This is one of the two great İstanbul mosque complexes designed by Mimar Sinan. Though not as spectacular as the Süleymaniye, it was designed to a similar…
Istanbul
With serene lakes and nearly 2000 different kinds of trees and plants from all over the world, this 730-acre oasis of green in the north of the city is a…
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Istanbul
Only in İstanbul would a 400-year-old mosque be called 'new'. Constructed between 1597 and 1665 and closed at the time of research as it undergoes a long…
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Beyoğlu
The semahane (whirling-dervish hall) at the centre of this tekke (dervish lodge) was erected in 1491 and renovated in 1608 and 2009. It's part of a…
