Must-see attractions in Istanbul

  • Top Choice
    Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque

    Right in the heart of İstanbul’s historic center, this sacred Byzantine building remains an important symbol of power.

  • Top Choice
    Topkapı Palace

    Topkapı is the subject of more colourful stories than most of the world's museums put together. Libidinous sultans, ambitious courtiers, beautiful…

  • Top Choice
    Kariye Mosque

    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…

  • Top Choice
    Süleymaniye Mosque

    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…

  • Top Choice
    Basilica Cistern

    This subterranean structure was commissioned by Emperor Justinian and built in 532. The largest surviving Byzantine cistern in İstanbul, it was…

  • Top Choice
    Blue Mosque

    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…

  • Top Choice
    Grand Bazaar

    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)…

  • Top Choice
    Pera Museum

    There's plenty to see at this impressive museum, but its major draw is undoubtedly the 2nd-floor exhibition of paintings featuring Turkish Orientalist…

  • Top Choice
    İstanbul Archaeology Museums

    The city's foremost archaeological museum is housed in three buildings close to Topkapı Palace. There are many highlights, but the sarcophagi from the…

  • Top Choice
    Dolmabahçe Palace

    These days it’s fashionable for architects and critics influenced by the less-is-more aesthetic of Bauhaus masters to sneer at buildings such as…

  • Top Choice
    Kadıköy Produce Market

    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…

  • Top Choice
    Museum of Innocence

    The painstaking attention to detail in this fascinating museum/piece of conceptual art will certainly provide every amateur psychologist with a theory or…

  • Top Choice
    Museum of Turkish & Islamic Arts

    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…

  • Top Choice
    Rahmi M Koç Museum

    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…

  • Top Choice
    Spice Bazaar

    Vividly coloured spices are displayed alongside jewel-like lokum (Turkish delight) at this Ottoman-era marketplace, providing eye candy for the thousands…

  • Top Choice
    İstanbul Modern

    This lavishly funded and innovative museum has an extensive collection of Turkish art and also stages a constantly changing and uniformly excellent…

  • Top Choice
    İstiklal Caddesi

    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…

  • Top Choice
    Beylerbeyi Palace

    This opulently furnished 1865 building was designed by Sarkis Balyan, brother of Nikoğos (architect of Dolmabahçe Palace). It delighted both Sultan Abdül…

  • Hippodrome

    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

    Dating from 1836, this church is part of the Greek Patriarchate compound. Inside the church are artefacts including Byzantine mosaics, religious relics…