Mediterranean Itinerary- Istanbul

Hello friends,

Today I am sharing all things Istanbul with you all! Sharing the best places to visit, where to eat, what to do, travel tips and more! I know some of you have reached out about my Istanbul itinerary, so I am so excited to share it with you all!

Let me start off by saying, Turkey is SOOO beautiful. The second we landed and on our drive to our hotel, Marriot Istanbul, we saw so many breathtaking mosques. You will see one every couple of miles and trust me when I say you don’t get sick of them. The azan plays during prayer hours and it is so calming to hear. The city is beautiful, full of color and beautiful architecture, and there is so much to see and so much culture to take in.

Let’s start off by talking about getting around the city; public transportation! Although public transportation is fairly easy to take, it gets very confusing to separate the train system with the bus system. On certain hours the buses and trains are JAM PACKED. Keep your belongings safe and I repeat, keep your belongings safe. If you have a backpack, keep it in front of you. Do not put anything valuable in your back pockets. More on this topic later! Back to public transportation – if you thought the traffic in Chicago, LA, and New York was bad, then you haven’t seen anything yet. The traffic in Istanbul is awful. If you are able to get an Uber there, you are safe. However, not a lot of people drive Uber and it is not that readily available. The taxi system is still a huge part of transportation in Istanbul, but not a lot of drivers speak English. As you can imagine it gets very hard to communicate with them. Some may also say they are not trusting people. For example, on our way to the airport from Istanbul to Cappadocia, we got into a taxi in the hopes it would be a faster way to the airport since we were on a time crunch. The taxi driver picked us up and was driving around in circles for 30 minutes to increase his own fare amount. Now if this was an Uber ride there wouldn’t be an issue. If it wasn’t for Malick to look at a map and notice we weren’t going anywhere, we wouldn’t have known what he was doing. We then tried to communicate our concern but getting the point across was impossible.

STEALING
Once we realized our flight to Cappadocia was canceled, we had to spend another day in Istanbul. This time instead of taking a taxi to the airport, since that was a shitty experience, we decided to take public transportation. As we hopped on the train platform, we couldn’t figure out which platform to catch the train to the airport (remember when I said the bus and train lines get confusing?), so naturally we stopped to ask a lady on the right platform. She didn’t understand English well and obviously didn’t know the answer, so she asked a man who was also on the right platform. He told us we were going the wrong way, so he guided us to the left platform and hopped on the train with us. This was weird because that was the opposite way of where he was going initially. Long story short, the train filled up with hundreds of people and we were shoulder to shoulder stuck to one another, and on the next stop the man that helped us, abruptly jumped off. We quickly realized we were going the wrong way and jumped off the train a stop later. Malick went to look for his wallet and realized it was missing. He had put it into his pocket in a hurry to catch the train and we soon realized that the man who was “helping us” stole his wallet. So, this is why I reiterate, watch your belongings and do not let them out of sight! Also if you have been reading along on my travel blog posts, you know that Malick is on a roll with bad luck so far this trip!

Back to what is important – places to visit in Istanbul! Here is list in no particular order of the places we saw and ate.

Galata Tower: It is a historic tower built in 500 AD that was used as a watchtower. It is a very dominating landmark in Istanbul and gets very crowded! I highly recommend going super early in the morning. We went mid-day and there were thousands of people in the surrounding areas. The streets are cobble stone and it is a beauty to see. There are also outdoor restaurants and tons of shops in the area, so it is worth taking a stroll around once you have visited the tower.

Hagia Sophia Museum: Located just adjacent to the Blue Mosque stands the Hagia Sophia museum. It is absolutely breathtaking from the outside and the inside. Holds a lot of culture and beauty. There is a fee to enter the museum, but it was only 72 Turkish Liras. Definitely worth it!

Blue Mosque: The Blue Mosque is the infamous mosque in Istanbul, also known as the Sultan Ahmed Mosque. It is instilled with intricate hand painted blue tiles and the details are just outstanding. However, when we were in Istanbul the Blue Mosque was under construction, so we only had the opportunity to see it from the outside. Even then, it was absolutely stunning.

Seven Hills Restaurant: This rooftop restaurant offers the best views of both the Blue Mosque and the Hagia Sophia Mosque at the same time! The food is delicious too, but I was living for the scrumptious baklava. If you’re like us and don’t really make too many reservations traveling abroad, be sure to make one at this restaurant. It’s walking distance from both the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia; oh, and you’re welcome in advance 😊.

Sehzade Mosque: There are numerous mosques in Istanbul, so do not just use your time to see the Blue mosque. Malick and I stumbled upon this beautiful mosque while on our way to the Grand Bazaar (we love to walk around new cities; it’s the best way to see the many sites!) We are so glad we went inside because it was peaceful, breathtaking, and practically empty.

Grand Bazaar: If you are looking to shop many stores and boutiques efficiently, this is your stop. You will find evil eye everything and more. Definitely the place to make all of your purchases for your loved ones and yourself. It is very large. We did not even walk through half of it. We took home the most delicious Turkish delights and when we brought them home, they were done within days! The vendors will let you taste everything before you buy AND they will air tight seal the boxes so that they stay fresh when traveling! Highly recommend taking some home! I wish we had bought more!

Dolmabahçe Palace: When our flight to Cappadocia got cancelled, we had some extra time to explore the city, and I’m actually glad since we got to see the Dolmabahçe Palace! It is STUNNING. The architecture and the details are worth the visit. There is an entrance fee of 60 Turkish Liras.

Kubbe Istanbul: If you want to get that one Instagram photo for the feed then make the trip to Kubbe Istanbul. It is a tricky place to find, so I highly recommend looking it up in advance. On Yelp there is a person that gave step by step details on how to get there. Google Maps didn’t work too well, but you have to follow pictures and screenshots to recognize buildings. Try to follow the directions because it is easy to get lost. Once you get there, it looks like a construction site mixed with a garbage dump; I am not kidding! They don’t call themselves a restaurant because of the location. You can only get snacks like nuts and fruit and some tea but trust me, that’s enough. You aren’t paying for the food here, you are paying for the views. There is a flat rate fee to enter and I believe it was 55 Liras a person. You get to sit on a beautiful rug spread with pillows and the owner will feed the birds raw meat so that they are flying in your photos. It is a production. The amount of people that want to get that photo overlooking the beautiful city of Istanbul with the Blue Mosque in the distance is worth the trek.

As I wrap up this post on Istanbul, I must mention that flying to Cappadocia before visiting Istanbul is a must. Since the flight to Cappadocia is on a regional airline, you have to go back to Istanbul airport to get there. It makes more sense to fly to Cappadocia while you are already in the Istanbul airport to save you some travel time. So, don’t make the same mistake and save yourself some travel time!

If you have any other questions, don’t hesitate to ask! We had a great time and would definitely go back to visit!

Next up on the travel series will be the infamous Cappadocia!

Xoxo,

Farheen