You could easily spend a week or more exploring the city, but if you’ve got limited time use this post to make the most of your visit and get a good idea of what the city has to offer. Including main attractions and lesser known streets and locations.

|The Blue Mosque

(Open: 8.30 am – Dusk – Not including prayer times)

This UNESCO heritage site is a Byzantine Jewel complete with 6 minarets, 9 domes and 20,000 blue tiles!

Apparently, the mosque uses ostrich eggs on the highest chandeliers to deter spiders. The 19 year old sultan who commissioned it, oversaw the construction for 8 long years, only to die a few months later at the age of 27 due to Typhus an internal bleeding. The new mosque and its six minarets were not popular at first as it rivalled the Holy Harem Mosque in Mecca, which later had a seventh minaret added o reclaim its title. Though you will enter through the tourist entrance at the north, the grandest entrance is reserved for worshippers facing west.

Tip: If you found the Blue Mosque beautiful but too crowded, try Süleymaniye Mosque, built by the same architect. The view from the roof is incredible!

|Hagia Sophia Mosque

Open Everyday 9am – 11pm (partially closed during prayer) Free Entry

The Hagia Sophia Mosque is at the top of any list of what to see in Istanbul, but why?

The incredible building was built as a the centrepiece of the Christian world. It was built for Greek Orthodox Christians and was the largest cathedral in the world for nearly 1000 years! Now it holds the title of the 4th largest dome in the world. In 1943 it was made in to a Mosque when Constantinople (Istanbul) was conquered. It wasn’t until the 1930s that it was officially made in to a museum. Aside from the fact it is an impressive architectural feat which took just 5 years to complete, the interior is jaw dropping and the roof top view is not to be missed.

|Ortakoy Mosque

Open 9am – 6pm

This baroque style mosque is perched on the edge of the Bosphurous River and designed to catch the light reflecting off the river. You will have to wait for lake-sized puddles to form on the boardwalk before you will see the mosque reflected in all its glory. Despite having far fewer windows than the Blue Mosque, the Ortakoy Mosque is very light inside, mainly due to its large two storey windows surrounded by floor to ceiling pink and white mosaics. Outside, it’s easy to forget that the Bosphorus Bridge leading you to the mosque connects you to two continents, the Ortakoy Mosque lying on the Asian side of the city.

|Topkapi Palace

Palace Museum: €11 Harem: €7

The home of Imperial Sultans for 400 years, each Sultan made his mark on the palace before they left Topkapi for the Dolmabhce Palace. The Sultans lived in such luxury that many of them never felt the need to leave the palace walls. Some even kept their sons inside all their life! At the height of its glory, the palace harem housed 300 of Sultan’s concubines, under the control of his mother. The harems are the most interesting part of the residence due to their palatial detail, extravagant bath houses and intimate dining rooms.

|Dolmabhce Palace

Palace Entrance: €9.50 or Garden Entrance: €3

The name of this palace means ‘filled garden’. Not a particularly nice name for a palace. Logical though, as Dolmabhce Palace was built on land reclaimed from the sea and then filled in so that the palace could be built. The Sultans spent a lot of money on this palace, making it into a European style palace to show the world that the Sultans had European tastes and values. Compared to the sensual opulence of the Topkapi Palace, you wonder why they bothered. However, the ‘Gate to the Bosphorus’ in the gardens of the palace is stunning in its stark white beauty against the deep blue water. Flanked either side by candelabra style lampposts at least 20ft high and just a little further away, a gorgeous shaded tea garden.

|Beylerbey Palace

Palace Entrance: €12 or Garden Entrance: €5

Another very photogenic gate in the gardens of Dolmabhce Palace which also opens on to the river and creates a stunning frame for a view of the Bosphorus Bridge, if you find the right camera angle.

|Basilica Cistern

Open 9am – 6.30pm Entrance: €3

Nearly 1500 years ago this underground reservoir supplied water to the rich and powerful of Constantinople. Built using over 300 stone columns, each ‘rescued’ from different ruined temples, each with their own character and culture. This enormous subterranean hall was dubbed the Basilica for its sheer size. Somehow despite this, it was forgotten for over 100 years and left to decay.

It wasn’t until a travelling French scholar heard that people were getting their drinking water from a hole beneath their houses and even catching fish that it was rediscovered. When people heard of this secret underground chamber they started using it to dispose of rubbish and even their dead. Now it’s been restored and it’s possible to view the cistern from walkaways through the cavern of columns. Just watch out for the water that still drains from the ceiling.

If this is your sort of thing, check out the cisterns beneath Lisbon!

|The Grand Bazaar

One of the oldest and biggest covered markets in the world, with an overwhelming 4,000 shops, and that’s not even counting the vendors lining the streets outside the Bazaar entrances. At first, you will feel surrounded by so much chaos that you may give in and surrender to the flow of the crowds. But don’t because there are a few gems within the Bazaar you shouldn’t be pulled past. If you’re craving a haven from the tourist targeted stores and bargaining hell then follow signs to anything that ends in ‘Han’. Hans are inns/tea houses built around a small central courtyard, encircled by a balcony and only accessible via a narrow entrance built to allow travellers and merchants to pass through with their camel.

They are also known as caravan palaces. Zincirli Han has a fountain and mature tree at its centre, this photogenic two-tiered balcony courtyard is the perfect place to hide in the centre of the Bazaar. After entering the chaos through the Mercan Gate keep an eye out for the Zincirli Han sign hanging from the ceiling.

Tip: Other beautiful Hans include Büyük Valide Han and Sagir Han known for their rooftops. Alternatively, Hazzo Pull Passage, Vezir, Sair, KucukYeni, Buyuk Yeni and Kurkcu Hans are known for their teahouse courtyards.

|Galata Tower

Open 8.30am – 10pm Entrance: €3

The medieval tower and its ninth floor offer an incredible view of the city and the peninsula. Until the early 1960s, it was used as a watchtower for sighting city fires. Why not grab a drink from the bar and watch the city come to life as the night falls. Just as beautiful from the street below, get a photo of the tower either from Istiklal Street, Galata Kulesi (the one with the vines) or any other of the little streets that radiate out front he tower.

|Kamondo Merdivenleri Staircase

A curvaceous beauty of a Baroque-Art Nouveau staircase in the middle of the Galata District. Commissioned by a wealthy family, who later died in Auschwitz, this staircase was designed to prevent children from falling more than a few steps at once. Thoughtful, if not a little strange.

|Floating Market

Come here for fresh fish, delicious street food and an authentic taste of Istanbul, all floating on the river. Just follow the call of ‘Balik Ekmek! Balik Ekmek!’ (Fish in Bread! Fish in Bread!) Once you’ve got your street food wander over the bridge and watch the fisherman at work.

|Emirgan Park

Possibly the only calm space in the city, Emirgan Park is also one of the rare green spaces in this overwhelming metropolis. The park is known for hosting the famous tulip festival in April if you are around in the spring. Throughout the rest of the year, come here for the park’s lake and stepped waterfalls. When I arrive in a new city, I always need to find somewhere by the water to make me feel at home.

|Tea Houses

Other than the secretive cafes tucked into the corners of the Grand Bazaar, the best tea-houses or tea-gardens at street level are the following…

(1) Firuzaga Kahvesi wedged behind Firuzaga Mosque (2) Kybele Hotel Cafe (3) Karabatak Cafe on the corner of the impossibly popular fairy-light and vine draped streets of Karaköy (4) Gülhane Sur Cafe, a narrow side street nestled into the city walls, scattered with awnings, cushions and benches. (5) Sirin Firin Cafe & Bakery

|Cafes With A View

(1) Kubbe-I Cafe has a great view though you will need cash to splash and not mind crowds or seagulls! (2) Studio Istanbul is another rooftop cafe with picture-perfect views of the mosque and river (3) Pierre Loti Hill Cafe, named after a French author who came to Istanbul as a naval officer and kept coming back to the city he fell in love with and the girl who lived there. This was his favourite bar to soak in the Ottoman culture. You will see why when you sit outside on the balcony overlooking the Bosphorus and its two islands. (4) At Uskudar Promenade Cafe on the Asian side of the river you will find steps leading down to the water adorned in beautiful cushions and low wooden tea tables, looking out onto the fairytale Maiden’s Tower.

|Try Kumpir

A very popular and simple street food in Istanbul. Essentially an enormous jacket potato with endless toppings to choose from. Perfect to walk around with if you’re visiting the city in early spring or autumn.

|Bars

Bomontiada is an old brewery turned cultural centre. An eclectic mix of furniture and fairy lights has overrun the brewery floor where large concerts and events bring the crowds in every night.

|Balat & Fener Neighbourhood

(1) Kiremit Caddesi Street Houses, do not leave Balat without seeing this street. (2) Merdivenli Yokuss Sokagi Street of colourful houses. (3) Balat Bazaar for an even more intimate experience. (4) Naftalin Vintage Shop and Cafe, a corner cafe in-between two streets. (5) Ottoman era houses of Zeyrek, old world high rise huts.

|Beyoglu Neighbourhood

(1) Dem Bar, a trendy cafe near Galata Tower. (2) Tiny rooftop churches on the 6th floor of Tahsin Hoca Sokagi Street built by the White Russians who escaped to Istanbul in the wake of the Russian Revolution in 1917. (3) Baklava at Karaoke’s Gulluoglu, handmade and has a reputation as the best in Istanbul. (4) Vintage trams can be found on Istiklal Caddesi in Beyoglu and are a beautiful portal to another time. (5) Taoism Istikal Street, the most popular street in Istanbul, leading you to Galata Tower. (6) Arif Pass Apartment Building, a hidden Constantine mansion covered in vines.

|Arnavutköy & Bebek Neighbourhood

(1) Hayri Balik Bar, a colourful pocket-sized restaurant. (2) Rumeli Fortress, its grand walls climb out of the river and up a series of hills to overlook the city. (3) The Afif Ahmet Pasa Yali, Riverside Baroque mansion on the Bosphurus. (4) Zeki Pasha Palace, another riverside mansion under a bridge worth €75 million, with 29 bedrooms and a Japanese garden. (5) View of the mosque across the water (from 25 Beyazgül Sk). (6) The waterfront Ottoman town houses.

|Rainbow Stairs

One of the rainbow staircases is very close to the umbrella street, though the longer staircase can be found at Pürtelas Hasan Efendi, Salt Pazari Yks. No.2. The staircase is one example of a citywide project to bring colour to the streets of Istanbul. The man who took it upon himself to paint the steps took 4 days to complete the steps. I have no idea how he kept people off of the wet paint, When the city council found out, they covertly painted the steps concrete grey again, but the public had already fallen in love with the rainbow staircase and protested their return to grey.

|Umbrella Street

Somewhere between Kebapcihani Sokak, 2 34116 Süleymaniye and Sefa-I Hürrem Cafe you should find the famous umbrella street and a few other rainbow themed streets including one beneath a net of birdhouses.

|Yerebatan Caddesi

Brightly coloured houses in Sultanahmet District are only a few minutes walk from the Basilica Cisterne and the Hagia Sophia. These houses’ facades are like something from a children’s fairytale and the perfect way to escape the crowds roaming the historical sites of the district.

|Street Art

Come to Yeldeğirmeni in Kadıköy District on the Asian side of the Bosphorus to explore some of the oldest streets in the city, now adorned with beautiful street art murals. Take a self-guided tour or a personalised alternative street guide, either way, it won’t disappoint.

|Museum of Innocence

The physical embodiment of Pamuk’s novel by the same name. The story of a rich uncle living in Istanbul in the 1960s who falls obsessively in love with his impoverished niece. This museum is the novel come to life with Kemal’s personal effects amongst other intimate settings from the book including his niece’s room. It’s not necessary to have read the book to view the museum as the intricate personal possessions of a bygone era are interesting enough without a background. However, reading the novel would definitely add something to your experience.

|Prince’s Islands

Ferry Ticket: €4 – €10 Return (Crossing takes between 40 mins to 1hr 30 mins)

If you have spare time take the short ferry ride to the Prince’s Islands. There are nine islands, of which only four are open to the public, but this is more than enough to enjoy. Strange to think of them as they used to be, places of exile or even a prison for royals. The islands don’t allow cars, the main form of transport are horse-drawn carriages which take you past the ornate Ottoman townhouses and unspoilt pine forests.

Known for their unspoilt natural beauty, a few abandoned Greek Orthodox buildings and turn of the century time capsule atmosphere, these islands represent a lost time and an escape from the chaotic city. Go as early as you can and in the middle of the week to see the islands at their best, without the crowds. If crowds or resort beaches are not your thing, avoid Büyükada Island and stay on the first island, Heybeliada. As far as Instagram goes this area is still uncharted.