Top 50 Best Things to Do in Istanbul

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Tonkarn

In 2024, hakia sophia used to be free of charge. But now it cost 25 eur. However, the place full of history and interesting thing inside. Avoid long waiting line by purchasing on line.

Anonymous user

Efforts a visit , night ticket was perfect quiet less crowded

_TI***eh

This place is a worth visiting. So many historical collections and stories. Highly recommended. You would need to walk a lot to fully explore Harem and Topkapi together.

Tonkarn

Absolutely stunning. Really nice palace. However, the rntrance fee was quite expensive. Recommended. Avoid long ticket queue by purchasimg online ticket via trip.com

shanghaiboyu

The Bosphorus Strait is a natural waterway of significant strategic, economic, and cultural value. • Geographically Important: Connecting the Black Sea to the north and the Sea of ​​Marmara and the Mediterranean Sea to the south, it is the only access point for Black Sea countries to the open sea. It also serves as the natural dividing line between Europe and Asia, holding a crucial strategic position. The strait has been the subject of ongoing contention throughout history. • Significant Economic Value: As a vital shipping channel, hundreds of large ships transit the strait daily. In the first nine months of 2024, 31,161 vessels passed through the strait, a year-on-year increase of 7.1%. It is a crucial artery for the Black Sea countries' foreign trade, including oil transportation, and has generated significant revenue for Turkey through navigation. • Rich Cultural Heritage: Greek, Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman cultures converged here, marking the Asian terminus of the Silk Road. Goods, cultures, and religions from both the East and the West converged and merged here. Numerous historical sites along the strait, such as the Topkapi Palace, bear witness to the exchange and collision of civilizations. • Rich Tourism Resources: The strait's natural scenery and historical sites complement each other beautifully. Lush meadows and shrubs are interspersed with tall buildings and small houses, along with towering palaces and ruins of ancient castles from the Roman and Ottoman empires. Cruises offer a glimpse into the Eurasian charm of both sides of the strait, and the scenery is particularly captivating at sunset. • Convenient Transportation: Turkey has built numerous bridges across the Bosphorus Strait, such as the Bosphorus Highway Bridge. These bridges are not only marvels of transportation engineering but also landmarks of Istanbul, connecting Europe and Asia and facilitating cross-strait travel and transportation.

Travel Juri

Very impressive, especially how the light shines through the hundreds if coloured glass windows, the tranquility amidst hundreds of tourists that people use to do their prayers.

火锅美人鱼

Climbing the tower offers a 360-degree panoramic view of Istanbul. The queue takes about an hour, and I started queuing around 4 PM on November 13th. I managed to catch the sunset just in time, which was quite a rare treat! Although the price was a bit steep, I felt it was worth it.

202***68

Istanbul's Grand Bazaar is the largest and most beautiful in Eurasia. Once you've visited, you won't want to leave. More than just a shopping paradise, it's a living museum where you can experience the legacy of the Ottoman Empire and the culture of Turkish life. Wandering through arcades shimmering with light and shadow, the clink of vendors' cries and the clatter of teaware echo in your ears—this is undoubtedly a must-visit for exploring the soul of Istanbul. Like it 👍

_We***60

Istanbul Archaeology Museum is the most important archaeological museum in Turkey and one of the most outstanding in the world. It is located in the outer courtyard of Topkapi Palace and houses more than 1 million artifacts, covering civilizations from Mesopotamia, Egypt, Anatolia, Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome to Byzantium and Ottoman Empire. It is almost zero distance from the remains of ancient civilizations and can be called a "time container". #One of my favorite museums

携Cheng携Cheng

Istanbul Riverside I said before that the Grand Bazaar is the big alley in Istanbul, and Istiklal Street is the Istanbul Riverside. On the first day, we went to Taksim Square with a group tour, and only had one hour to go shopping. Of course, we didn't go shopping enough, so we arranged our time here for the second day's free travel. We took the bus from the hotel to this area (it is said that the taxi price in Istanbul is expensive and there is traffic jam, because the traffic jam will be more expensive, so we chose to take the bus). We first went to the Rainbow Stairs, and then walked through a residential area to the nearby Carrefour. In the middle, we also went into a drugstore. The owner was very talkative and said that he had been to many places in China, and even to Tianjin and Hohhot. He was very kind. It was a mistake to go to Carrefour first. I bought a lot of things, which caused us to carry these things behind me. After buying snacks and souvenirs, we came to Istiklal Street, which may be the busiest pedestrian street in Istanbul. There were a lot of people on the day we went. It can be seen that not only foreign tourists came to visit, but also locals came to shop. There are large and small shopping malls, restaurants, jewelry stores, souvenir shops, and clothing stores on the street. The types of shops are very complete. We went to Pandora, Mado, St. Anthony's Church, a baked potato shop, a regular restaurant barbecue shop, a street stall barbecue shop, a candy store, many clothing stores, Watsons, two shopping malls... I don't know if I have said it all. I walked around for a whole day and went back when it was dark. I bought a lot of things and ate local special barbecue. Although I spent the whole day on this street and didn't go anywhere else, there are really a lot of food, drinks and shopping on this street. Although it's a bit tiring, I had a great time. The food is much better when traveling independently than when traveling with a group.