Historical Places:
It was the home of Atatürk between the years 1927 and 1938. He died there on 10th of November, 1938. The palace is in Besiktas municipality and very close to its center.
• These are very close to each other and located in the old town:
• Basilica Cistern (Yerebatan Sarnici): This is also a venue for some concerts and last scenes of the movie, Inferno were shot here.• Hagia Sophia (Ayasofya Müzesi)
• Topkapi Palace (Topkapi Sarayi)
• Archeological Museum (Arkeoloji Müzesi)
• Galata Tower (Galata Kulesi)
Sightseeing:
• Princes' Islands: Büyükada, Heybeliada, Burgazada, Kinaliada: You can go there with vessels from Kadiköy or Bostanci. These islands are on the Anatolian side of Istanbul. Bostanci is close to Bagdat Street which is popular for shopping and leisure time. Also, Bostanci is closer to the islands than Kadiköy, so you can get to the islands more quickly from there.
Touristic places:
• Istanbul Aquarium: It is known as the biggest thematic aquarium of the world.
• Another aquarium is SeaLife: You may choose either of the aquariums according to transportation options or proximity.
• Grand Bazaar (Kapali Carsi): You can buy spices, some touristic gifts or gold, etc. (But, you can also buy touristic gifts at other shopping centers because there are a lot of local items sold at the shopping centers.) The first scenes of the movie, Skyfall were shot here and around of it.
• Spice Bazaar (Misir Carsisi): You can buy spices, some touristic gifts, nuts, Turkish delight, dried fruit, herbs, etc.
• To buy Turkish coffee:
-"Kurukahveci Mehmet Efendi" brand has a store at Eminönü- very close to Grand Bazaar. There is generally a queue there.
-or you can buy "Kurukahveci Mehmet Efendi" Turkish coffee also in supermarkets like Macrocenter at Zorlu AVM, Migros, Carrefour, etc. Quality is the same if you buy it from supermarkets or from their center store at Eminönü.
• Istiklal Street at Taksim: Now it is generally full of Syrian or some immigrant people, but you can see this street because it is one of the touristic places in Istanbul.
• You can take the "nostalgic tram" that travels on this street. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=At87kULN6I4• MadameTussauds Istanbul : on Istiklal Street at Taksim
• Karaköy Bars Street: It has different bars or coffee shops, restaurants: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xDSH_cVwKc
Shopping:
• Zorlu Shopping Center (Zorlu AVM): Zincirlikuyu stop of Metrobüs and Gayrettepe stop of metro is close to Zorlu AVM.
• Kanyon Shopping Center (Kanyon AVM): Levent metro stop is the closest one.
• Istinye Park, Sariyer: You can take one of the buses listed here from the 4.Levent metro stop to get to this shopping center.
• Nisantasi City's Shopping Center (Nisantasi City's AVM): Osmanbey metro stop is the closest one, then you can walk along the Rumeli Street to get to this shopping center.
• Rumeli Street in Nisantasi and some streets around it: location link
You can go there by metro too: Osmanbey metro station is the closest one.
This is similar to the Bahnhostrasse in Zurich in terms of its characteristics with expensive stores.
• Bagdat Street (Bagdat Caddesi): location link
It is similar to the Bahnhostrasse in Zurich in terms of its characteristics with expensive stores.
There are a lot of stores, restaurants, coffee spots, especially between the Caddebostan and Catalcesme bus stops. You can walk between these stops or take the bus from time to time. But, you can take a bus from Catalcesme to Caddebostan, not the other way around because it is a one way road. If you want to turn back, you should take a bus on another road below by the sea side.
Where to Eat:
1) European side:
• Restaurants of Divan Hotels(for ex. at Taksim), Movenpick Hotels(for example at Sisli), Swissotel, etc. I can really advice you to go to Swissotel because it has a nice view over the sea in their lobby. This hotel is in Macka and close to Nisantasi.
• I don't advice street food due to corona
• Restaurants at Zorlu AVM, Kanyon AVM, Istinye Park, Nisantasi City's AVM
• Restaurants at Nisantasi, Tesvikiye:
Some examples are below:
• Soho House at Beyoglu: It has a nice restaurant and is close to Beyoglu-Karaköy tunnel which is known as the world's second oldest metro.
• If you want to eat somewhere in Eminönü while you are wandering around the historical places there:
• You may try Hamdi Restaurant, it has a nice sea view also and also has a lot of foreign tourists. But I haven't been there during the pandemic, so don't know if it is safe in terms of covid.
• Dönerci Sahin Usta, 1926: A spot to taste Turkish Döner. I haven't visited, but have heard of its fame.
• You can also try the restaurants of hotels, but I don't know about them in Eminönü
• Sultanahmet Köfte is very popular when you are around the district Sultanahmet close to Eminönü and it is in the old town where Hagia Sophia is near. You may choose a restaurant to eat that food according to your own choice. The one I tried was at: Sultanahmet Köftecisi
• If you want to walk by the seaside of the district Bebek, nice options for restaurants:
• Lucca
• Taps
• Nusret Steak House in Etiler or at Istinye Park
• Günaydin restaurants: For meals with meat, meatballs
• Namli Kebap, Levent
2) Anatolian side:
• Restaurants at Bagdat Street
After shopping on that street or having your meal, you may go below that street and walk by the seaside in the Anatolian part which has a view of the Princes' Islands (Büyükada, Heybeliada, Burgazada, Kinaliada -"ada" means island in Turkish). If you like, you may head to Bostanci and take a vessel to visit these islands. Fish restaurants are popular on the islands, so you may try one of them.
• Lacivert Restaurant: Nice place with a view of the sea and the Bosphorus
• Günaydin restaurants: For meals with meat, meatballs
• There are a lot of nice restaurants on the Anatolian side, but according to the historical and touristic places that I listed, most of the time you will be on the European side. So, I wrote down a lot of options for that side of the city.
Coffee Shops:
European side:
• Nisantasi MOC, Voi, Café Nero, Starbucks• Starbucks, Cafe Nero at shopping centers listed above in the "Shopping" section• Bebek Coffee (Bebek Kahve)
Anatolian side:
• Bagdat Street: Cafe Nero, Starbucks
To buy baklava(Turkish dessert):
• Karaköy Güllüoglu: This is the most famous one
• At Taksim: There are some baklava stores very close to the Taksim Square, Taksim Metro Station: https://g.page/Hafiz1864?share
• Istiklal Street: There are also some stores that sell baklava
Tickets for transportation:
You should ask at the hotel lobby for ex. the nearest location where you can buy a travel card or maybe better if you can, get one at the airport. But I don't know if they sell it close to or in the airport.
In Istanbul, we show our travel card to the machine that reads and reduces the travel expense from it, before we use each transportation. So, you should buy your first travel card from the related ticket office at center bus terminals or at some metro stations.
In general tourists prefer taxi instead of public transportation, so you can try that too since it can be difficult as a tourist to find the addresses in a short time.
Transportation options:
Timetable and route planner can be checked at iett.gov.tr
• Metro
• Marmaray: Metro is connected to Marmaray at some stops: Yenikapi, Ayrilikcesme. After the Üsküdar stop Marmaray goes under the water in a tunnel (you don't see the sea of course) and its first stop is at Sirkeci where it is very close to the historical places listed above in the old town.
• Metrobüs: It is generally used to travel from the Anatolian side to the European side or vice versa, quickly. It is generally crowded, but you can have a seat if you get on it at Sögütlücesme (Kadiköy)-Anatolian side, Zincirlikuyu (European side), or Mecidiyeköy (European side).
• Bus: Details can be found here: iett.gov.tr
• Tram:
- Kabatas-Bagcilar tram: It passes along the old town too and you can use it to go to the places listed in the "Historical Places" section. This website gives information about the route of this tram and what you will see on the way.
- Nostalgic trams:
- From seaside of Kadiköy to Moda: It passes along the Bahariye Street where there are a lot of stores and restaurants, coffee shops. Kadiköy and Moda is a district where young people like students visit the most.
- From Taksim Square to Sishane: It passes along the Istiklal Street
- Eyüp-Pierre Lotti : It is used to visit the touristic and historical place Pierre Lotti Hill
- Macka-Taskisla : This cable car can be used when you are around Tesvikiye or Macka districts.
