Istanbul Things to Do Tips by mavi-tr

Istiklal Caddesi (Or Independence Avenue) is a very long street and it's the centre of nightlife, shopping, eating, cinema going and basically everything else you need for a really great time..

You can see all walks of life here but in the weekends and evenings it's floaded with younger people in search of great night life.

A small tram runs from Taksim Square (the bustling transportation hub from which Istiklal leads off), down to Tunnel Square, which is the other end of Istiklal. It's a long walk but really worth it as there are very few cars, the atmosphere is wonderful and there's lots to see and do. Cinemas, nightclubs (gay & straight), shops, restaurants, theatres, galleries and cultural centres can all be found here as well as 3 churches, a mosque and several grand consulates.

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Address: Istiklal Caddesi, Taksim
Directions: Beyoglu.. You can catch a bus to Taksim Square from anywhere in Istanbul. If you're coming from the north you can take the metro.

The Sultanahmet area is the heart of touristic Istanbul. It's likely that your hotel will be located here (and there are so many), and that you will spend your first moments here. There is a lot to see.

The most famous sights of course are the St Sophia church, which was converted into a mosque and is now a museum where everyone is welcome to visit. Beautiful mosaics and a wonderful building indeed. Then of course there is the Blue Mosque, worth going in there when the prayer time is not on.

Definitely worth taking a small trip to is the underground water cistern. Very atmospheric and interesting architecture down there.. I never get bored of it!

There are a lot of restaurants here and they can be reasonable but they're more expensive than many other parts of the city. Locals don't really eat here.

Sultanahmet, due to its religious sights and such is not really an area for nightlife, for that you should head to Taksim. There is a bus from Sultanahmet to Taksim, cost 1.000.000 TL

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Directions: Sultanahmet is on the tram network which connections to the metro at Aksaray and Zeytinburnu. If you're coming from the airport this is ideal and cheap. Buses serve the area.

Another touristic centre not far from Sultanahmet, Beyazit boasts the world's largest and oldest covered bazaar. For all intents and purposes, this is rather touristic although you can still find bargains if you have decent skills. What you do come here for though is to soak up the atmosphere. Unlike other parts of Istanbul, you really do feel like you've entered the exotic east here. There are traders from all over Anatolia pushing their wares. To be fair, a good deal of those are carpets.. more about that later.

There is also a rather nice mosque in the area.

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Directions: Beyazit is on the same tramline as Sultanahmet, a short, quick and easy ride for just 1.000.000TL, buses also serve this area.

Dolmabahce Palace is delightful. The architecture is wonderful and the inside, also being wonderful in appearance feels very mysterious and provokes curiosity, especially when you imagine what happened here... You should definitely spend a couple of hours here or so.. Tours are arranged.

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There are many places by the Bosphorus which are an absolute delight but let's focus on these few:

Ortakoy. Ortakoy is a very popular hangout place here. It's 2nd only to Taksim for nightlife, many concerts in clubs and many very trendy places indeed. But it also boasts an excellent restaurant area where you can eat outside and admire the gorgeous Ortakoy Mosque against the great Bosphorus bridge, particularly when it's lit up in the night.

Beskitas is great for shopping. Many students live here and the atmosphere is youthful and rather great amongst the pedestrianised streets. Lost of cheap shops, some restaurants and a generally nice place to hang out.. Sometimes I like to sit by the water and watch the boats as they come in.

Moda, on the Asian side (take a ferry from Besiktas), there is a charming tea garden here where you can have your Turkish tea and a truckload of sugar. Also some nice bars, good restaurants AND some of the best ice cream in Turkey! (Ali Usta). There's also a great walk along the water's edge. Very nice and quieter than other places.

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Directions: Besiktas - Metro coming soon, but for now take the "DOLMUS" (shared taxi) from just outside Taksim Square, very cheap and quick.
Ortakoy - As Beskitas, bus or dolmus
Moda - Take the ferry from Besiktas to Kadikoy

Think you're the trendy type? We'll see if you fit into Istanbul's trendy scene!

Areas to look out for
Etiler & Levent: Plenty of rich people living here, some clubs and of course Akmerkez shopping mall which, even if you can't afford anything, is a great mall to look around and spend some time there. Boasts food court and cinemas like all do and won awards.
Bagdat Caddesi: Count how many people have perioxide blonde hair here.. People maxing out their daddy's credit cards in the the most upscale of stores. Lovely wide pavements and generally quite interesting

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