By air
Istanbul Airport (IST), ~40 km; Sabiha Gökçen (SAW) on the Asian side
Middle East · Türkiye
Istanbul, Türkiye
Two continents, domes and bazaars
Getting there
Best time to visit
April to June and September to November — mild
Don't miss
Hagia Sophia
The Blue Mosque
Topkapı Palace
The Basilica Cistern
Things to do
The Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque
The Grand Bazaar
A Bosphorus cruise
A hammam
Where to eat
Sources: Photo: Arild Vågen · CC BY-SA 3.0
What to pack
Comfortable shoes, a scarf for the mosques
A quieter corner
Balat's colourful streets
Questions travellers ask
When is the best time to visit Istanbul?
April to June or September to November, when it's mild. Pack comfortable shoes and a scarf for the mosques.
Which Istanbul airport should I fly into?
Istanbul Airport (IST) is about 40 km out; Sabiha Gökçen (SAW) sits on the Asian side.
What are the must-sees in Istanbul?
Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, Topkapı Palace and the Basilica Cistern. Add the Grand Bazaar, a Bosphorus cruise and a hammam.
What should I eat in Istanbul?
Simit, kebabs and baklava — and a fish sandwich by the Galata Bridge. Afterwards, explore Balat's colourful streets.
About Istanbul
- Coastal
Where it is
Istanbul is the largest city in Türkiye, straddling the Bosphorus strait between Europe and Asia, with the Sea of Marmara to the south and the Black Sea to the north; the Golden Horn inlet divides its European side.
History
Founded by Greek colonists as Byzantium, the city was refounded by Constantine the Great as Constantinople in 330 and was the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire for more than a thousand years. The Ottomans under Mehmed II took it in 1453 and made it the capital of their empire until its end; when the Turkish Republic was founded in 1923 the capital moved to Ankara.
People
Istanbul draws people from every region of Türkiye; Turkish is the main language, Kurdish is widely heard, and there are long-established Greek, Armenian and Jewish communities. Daily life runs on tea gardens, simit sellers, meyhane taverns, Bosphorus ferries and the football rivalry of Galatasaray, Fenerbahçe and Beşiktaş.
Known for
- Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque
- Topkapı Palace and the Basilica Cistern
- The Grand Bazaar and the Spice Bazaar
- Ferries and cruises on the Bosphorus
- Turkish baths, kebabs and baklava
Did you know?
Hagia Sophia, completed in 537 under the emperor Justinian, remained the largest cathedral in the world for nearly a thousand years.
We haven't written a guide for this place yet — you can still plan a trip here.