Category: Istanbul

Istanbul has tons of eating options.  Like any major city, some are outstanding and some are sub-par.  If you are looking for good food, you generally want to avoid just walking into a restaurant in Sultanahmet.  There are a handful of good spots in Sultanahmet, but many restaurants make up for their prime locations with…

Although it is an ancient city with winding streets that don’t even come close to forming a grid, Istanbul is surprisingly easy to travel around.  It’s easy to walk between many of the main tourist sites, and there are plenty of solid public transit options to use when your feet get tired.

I may be biased, but Istanbul is the most beautiful, unique, and mesmerizing city in the world.  It is a city defined by its juxtapositions: the place where east meets west, ancient meets modern, tradition meets innovation.  These contradictions have created a city full of life, history, culture, and intrigue unlike any other.  It is impossible…

These daily Istanbul itineraries describe a full week of activities in Istanbul.  I have listed these out in my order of priority – if I only had three days in Istanbul I would do the itineraries for the first 3 days listed below, etc.

You can easily spend a week or more as a tourist in Istanbul with all the fabulous things there are to see and do.  This page discusses the major Istanbul sites and also highlights some popular activities.  The good news is that many of the historic sites are clustered together which makes visiting several of the big guys in one…

Most of Istanbul’s hotels are clustered around three primary areas: Sultanahmet, Taksim / Beyoğlu and the Bosphorus.

If you plan to spend several days in Istanbul and visit most of the major museums you may want to consider purchasing an Istanbul museum pass.  The pass will give you free entry to most of the government-run museums in Istanbul and save you from waiting in long lines to buy tickets.  You can buy a museum…