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Istanbul itinerary

Every place in “Istanbul in October: Weather, Crowds and Prices”. Save places in the guide to make this list yours.

  1. 1

    Hagia Sophia - Fifteen Hundred Years Under One Dome

    Hagia Sophia was completed in 537 as the cathedral of Constantinople, converted to a mosque in 1453, made a museum in 1935 and returned to use as a mosque in 2020. Its dome spans 31 metres and stood as the largest in…

    Address
    Sultan Ahmet, Ayasofya Meydani No:1, 34122 Fatih, Istanbul
    Nearest transit
    Sultanahmet stop, T1 tram, 3-min walk
  2. 2

    A Bosphorus Cruise - Clear Air and Empty Decks

    The Bosphorus is the strait dividing Europe from Asia, 31 kilometres from the Sea of Marmara to the Black Sea, and going out on it is the single best thing to do in Istanbul. The public Sehir Hatlari long Bosphorus…

    Address
    Eminonu ferry terminal, Kennedy Cd., 34110 Fatih, Istanbul
    Nearest transit
    Eminonu stop, T1 tram, at the ferry terminal
  3. 3

    The Grand Bazaar - Four Thousand Shops and a Dry Roof

    The Grand Bazaar has been trading since 1461, when Mehmed the Conqueror ordered the first covered hall built after taking the city. It now runs to around 4,000 shops along 61 covered streets under painted vaults, with…

    Address
    Beyazit, Kalpakcilar Cd. No:22, 34126 Fatih, Istanbul
    Nearest transit
    Beyazit-Kapalicarsi stop, T1 tram, 2-min walk
  4. 4

    Republic Day - 29 October and Fireworks Over the Bosphorus

    Republic Day falls on 29 October and marks the proclamation of the Turkish Republic in 1923, making 2026 the 103rd anniversary. It is the largest national holiday in the country. Taksim Square and the Bosphorus…

    Address
    Taksim Meydani, 34435 Beyoglu, Istanbul
    Nearest transit
    Taksim station (M2 metro), at the square
  5. 5

    Topkapi Palace - Four Courtyards and a Two-Sea View

    Topkapi Palace was the seat of the Ottoman sultans for roughly 400 years from the 1460s, and it is laid out as four successive courtyards rather than a single building, each one more restricted than the last. The…

    Address
    Cankurtaran, 34122 Fatih, Istanbul
    Nearest transit
    Gulhane stop, T1 tram, 5-min walk
  6. 6

    The Blue Mosque - Twenty Thousand Iznik Tiles

    The Sultan Ahmed Mosque, universally called the Blue Mosque, was completed in 1617 and takes its nickname from the roughly 20,000 hand-painted Iznik tiles lining the upper interior, most of them in blue and white. It…

    Address
    Sultan Ahmet, Atmeydani Cd. No:7, 34122 Fatih, Istanbul
    Nearest transit
    Sultanahmet stop, T1 tram, 4-min walk
  7. 7

    The Basilica Cistern - 336 Columns Under the City

    The Basilica Cistern was built under Justinian in 532 to store water for the Great Palace, and it is an underground chamber the size of a cathedral: 336 marble columns in twelve rows holding up a brick vault, standing…

    Address
    Alemdar, Yerebatan Cd. 1/3, 34110 Fatih, Istanbul
    Nearest transit
    Sultanahmet stop, T1 tram, 2-min walk
  8. 8

    The Spice Bazaar and Eminonu - Chestnut and Pomegranate Season

    The Spice Bazaar was completed in 1664 as part of the New Mosque complex, funded by duties on goods from Cairo, which is why Turkish speakers still call it the Egyptian Bazaar. It is far smaller than the Grand Bazaar…

    Address
    Rustem Pasa, Erzak Ambari Sok. No:92, 34116 Fatih, Istanbul
    Nearest transit
    Eminonu stop, T1 tram, 3-min walk
  9. 9

    Suleymaniye Mosque - Sinan's Best Room and a Free Terrace

    Suleymaniye Mosque was built between 1550 and 1557 by Mimar Sinan for Suleiman the Magnificent, and Sinan, the greatest Ottoman architect, is buried in a small tomb just outside its walls. It sits on the third hill of…

    Address
    Suleymaniye, Prof. Siddik Sami Onar Cd. No:1, 34116 Fatih, Istanbul
    Nearest transit
    Vezneciler station (M2 metro) or Beyazit stop, T1 tram, 8-min walk
  10. 10

    Buyukada and the Princes' Islands - Car-Free Pine Woods

    The Princes' Islands sit in the Sea of Marmara an hour or so southeast of the city, and Buyukada is the largest. Byzantine emperors exiled inconvenient royals here, which is where the name comes from, and Trotsky spent…

    Address
    Buyukada, 34970 Adalar, Istanbul
    Nearest transit
    Ferry from Kabatas or Eminonu, 60 to 90 minutes
  11. 11

    Balat and Fener - Painted Houses on the Golden Horn

    Balat and neighbouring Fener run along the Golden Horn northwest of the old city and were historically the Jewish and Greek quarters of Ottoman Istanbul. What survives is a hillside of narrow lanes and painted timber…

    Address
    Balat, Vodina Cd., 34087 Fatih, Istanbul
    Nearest transit
    Golden Horn ferry to Fener or Ayvansaray; buses 99 and 44B from Eminonu

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