Istanbul in 4 Days: The Charm of the City Between Two Continents

AlexTref871, Piotr Matyja, Alexxx1979, Moyan Brenn, Far-gh, İhsan Deniz Kılıçoğlu, Carlos Delgado - CC BY-SA 4.0

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Istanbul in 4 days: complete itinerary with map

Istanbul in 4 Days: The Charm of the City Between Two Continents

Discover a magical border on an unforgettable weekend. From the grandeur of Hagia Sophia to the underground mysteries of the Basilica Cistern, breathe the soul of two worlds in one journey!

Duration: 4 days
Cities: Istanbul, Beyoğlu

The plan in numbers

The itinerary at a glance

A practical summary calculated directly from the planned days and ordered stops.

Duration: 4 days
Ordered stops: 25 stops
Cities: 2 cities
Estimated movement: 10 km · 105 min

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Day 1

Istanbul

Istanbul is the ultimate bridge between worlds, famously straddling two continents. Positioned between the Sea of Marmara and the Black Sea, the city is split by the Bosphorus, one of the world's busiest waterways, placing it at the literal crossroads of Europe and Asia.

Estimated route logistics

From Fountain Of Ahmed Iii to Kafes, with 7 ordered stops.

7 stopsApprox. 1.3 kmApprox. 17 min moving

Distances and travel times are estimates based on the ordered stops. Check live directions and opening information before leaving.

Fountain Of Ahmed Iii

The Fountain of Sultan Ahmed III is a fountain in the great square in front of the Imperial Gate of Topkapı Palace in Istanbul, Turkey. It was built under Ottoman sultan Ahmed III in 1728, in the style of the Tulip period. It was a social centre and gathering place during the Ottoman period of Constantinople.

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From the previous stop · On foot · 0.2 km · ~3 min

Hagia Irene

Hagia Irene or Hagia Eirene, sometimes known also as Saint Irene, is a former Eastern Orthodox church located in the outer courtyard of Topkapı Palace in Istanbul. It is the oldest known church structure in the city and one of only two Byzantine churches still standing in Istanbul today that were never converted into mosques, alongside the Church of Saint Mary of the Mongols, as it was used as an arsenal for storing…

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From the previous stop · On foot · 0.3 km · ~4 min

Istanbul Archaeology Museums

The Istanbul Archaeology Museums are a group of three archaeological museums located in the Eminönü quarter of Istanbul, Turkey, near Gülhane Park and Topkapı Palace. These museums house over one million objects from nearly all periods and civilizations in world history.

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From the previous stop · On foot · 0.1 km · ~1 min

Tiled Kiosk

The Tiled Kiosk is a pavilion set within the outer walls of Topkapı Palace and dates from 1472 as shown on the tile inscript above the main entrance. It was built by the Ottoman sultan Mehmed II as a pleasure palace or kiosk. It is located in the most outer parts of the palace, next to Gülhane Park. It was also called Glazed Kiosk.

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From the previous stop · On foot · 0.1 km · ~2 min

Gülhane Park

Gülhane Park is a historical urban park in the Fatih district of Istanbul, Turkey; it covers an area of 9.7 ha, is adjacent to and on the grounds of the Topkapı Palace. The south entrance of the park sports one of the larger gates of the palace. It is the oldest and one of the most expansive public parks in Istanbul.

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From the previous stop · On foot · 0.5 km · ~6 min

Topkapı Palace

The Topkapı Palace or the Seraglio, is a large museum and library in the east of the Fatih district of Istanbul in Turkey. From the 1460s to the completion of Dolmabahçe Palace in 1853, it served as the administrative center of the Ottoman Empire, and was the main residence of its sultans.

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From the previous stop · On foot · 0.1 km · ~2 min

Kafes

The Kafes, literally "cage", was the part of the Imperial Harem of the Ottoman Palace where possible successors to the throne were kept under a form of house-arrest and constant surveillance by the palace guards.

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Day 2

Istanbul

Estimated route logistics

From Hagia Sophia to Walled Obelisk, with 8 ordered stops.

8 stopsApprox. 1.1 kmApprox. 14 min moving

Distances and travel times are estimates based on the ordered stops. Check live directions and opening information before leaving.

Hagia Sophia

Hagia Sophia, officially the Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque, formally called as Temple of God's Holy Wisdom, is a mosque and a major cultural and historical site in Istanbul, Turkey. It was formerly a church (360–1453) and a museum (1935–2020).

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From the previous stop · On foot · 0.1 km · ~2 min

Augustaion

The Augustaion or, in Latin, Augustaeum, was an important ceremonial square in ancient and medieval Constantinople, roughly corresponding to the modern Aya Sofya Meydanı. Originating as a public market, in the 6th century it was transformed into a closed courtyard surrounded by porticoes, and provided the linking space between some of the most important edifices in the Byzantine capital.

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From the previous stop · On foot · 0.1 km · ~2 min

Basilica Cistern

The Basilica Cistern, or Cisterna Basilica, is the largest of several hundred ancient cisterns that lie beneath the city of Istanbul, Turkey. The cistern, located 150 metres (490 ft) southwest of the Hagia Sophia on the historical peninsula of Sarayburnu, was built in the 6th century during the reign of Byzantine emperor Justinian I. Today it is kept with little water, for public access inside the space.

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From the previous stop · On foot · 0.2 km · ~3 min

German Fountain

The German Fountain is a gazebo styled fountain in the northern end of the former Hippodrome of Constantinople in Istanbul and across from the Mausoleum of Sultan Ahmed I. It was constructed to commemorate the second anniversary of German Emperor Wilhelm II's visit to Istanbul in 1898. It was built in Germany, then transported piece by piece and assembled on its current site in 1900.

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From the previous stop · On foot · 0.2 km · ~2 min

Great Palace Of Constantinople

The Great Palace of Constantinople, also known as the Sacred Palace, was the large imperial Byzantine palace complex located in the south-eastern end of the peninsula today making up the Fatih district of Istanbul, in modern Turkey. It served as the main imperial residence of the Eastern Roman emperors until 1081 and was the centre of imperial administration for over 690 years.

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From the previous stop · On foot · 0.2 km · ~2 min

Sultan Ahmed Mosque

The Sultan Ahmed Mosque, popularly known as the Blue Mosque, is an Ottoman-era historical imperial mosque located in Istanbul, Turkey. It was constructed between 1609 and 1617 during the rule of Ahmed I. It attracts a large number of tourists and is one of the most iconic and popular monuments of Ottoman architecture.

Source and further information

From the previous stop · On foot · 0.2 km · ~3 min

Serpent Column

The Serpent Column, also known as the Serpentine Column, Plataean Tripod or Delphi Tripod, is an ancient bronze column at the Hippodrome of Constantinople in what is now Istanbul, Turkey. It is part of an ancient Greek sacrificial tripod, originally in Delphi and relocated to Constantinople by Constantine the Great in 324.

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From the previous stop · On foot · 0 km · ~1 min

Walled Obelisk

The Walled Obelisk or Masonry Obelisk is a Roman monument in the form of an obelisk in the former Hippodrome of Constantinople, now Sultanahmet Square in Istanbul, Turkey. It is situated west of the Sultan Ahmed Mosque, at the southern end of the ancient chariot-racing track of Constantinople's central barrier, beside the Obelisk of Theodosius and the Serpentine Column.

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Day 3

Istanbul

Estimated route logistics

From Galata Tower to Dolmabahçe Palace, with 5 ordered stops.

5 stopsApprox. 4.8 kmApprox. 44 min moving

Distances and travel times are estimates based on the ordered stops. Check live directions and opening information before leaving.

Galata Tower

The Galata Tower, officially the Galata Tower Museum, is a medieval Genoese tower in the Galata part of the Beyoğlu district of Istanbul, Turkey. Built as a watchtower at the highest point of the mostly demolished Walls of Galata, the tower is now an exhibition space and museum, and a symbol of Beyoğlu and Istanbul.

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From the previous stop · Transfer · 1.6 km · ~12 min

İstiklal Avenue

İstiklal Avenue is a 1.4 kilometre (0.87 mi) pedestrian street in the historic Beyoğlu (Pera) district in Istanbul, Turkey. It is one of the most famous avenues in the city. It acquired its modern name after the declaration of the Republic on 29 October 1923, İstiklal (Independence) commemorating Turkey's triumph in its War of Independence.

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From the previous stop · Transfer · 0.9 km · ~10 min

Republic Monument

The Republic Monument is a notable monument located at Taksim Square in Istanbul, Turkey, to commemorate the formation of the Turkish Republic in 1923.

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From the previous stop · Transfer · 1.3 km · ~11 min

Dolmabahçe Mosque

The Dolmabahçe Mosque is a baroque waterside mosque in Kabataş in the Beyoğlu district of Istanbul, Turkey, close to the Dolmabahçe Palace. It was commissioned by Queen Mother Bezmialem Valide Sultan and designed by the Turkish Armenian architect, Garabet Balyan in 1855. After his mother's death, Sultan Abdülmecid saw the building work through to completion.

Source and further information

From the previous stop · Transfer · 1 km · ~10 min

Dolmabahçe Palace

Dolmabahçe Palace is a 19th-century imperial palace located in Istanbul, Turkey, along the European shore of the Bosporus, which served as the main administrative center of the Ottoman Empire from 1853 to 1887 and from 1909 to 1922.

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Day 4

Istanbul

Estimated route logistics

From Galata Bridge to Süleymaniye Mosque, with 5 ordered stops.

5 stopsApprox. 2.8 kmApprox. 30 min moving

Distances and travel times are estimates based on the ordered stops. Check live directions and opening information before leaving.

Galata Bridge

The Galata Bridge is a bridge that spans the Golden Horn in Istanbul, Turkey. From the end of the 19th century in particular, the bridge has featured in Turkish literature, theater, poetry and novels. The current Galata Bridge is just the latest in a series of bridges linking Eminönü in the Fatih district and Karaköy in Beyoğlu since the early 19th century.

Source and further information

From the previous stop · On foot · 0.5 km · ~6 min

New Mosque

The New Mosque and later New Valide Sultan Mosque after its partial reconstruction and completion between 1660 and 1665, is an Ottoman imperial mosque located in the Eminönü quarter of Istanbul, Turkey. It is situated on the Golden Horn, at the southern end of the Galata Bridge, and is a notable Istanbul landmark marking the crossing from the old historic core of the city to the Beyoğlu (Pera) district.

Source and further information

From the previous stop · On foot · 0.2 km · ~3 min

Spice Bazaar

The Spice Bazaar in Istanbul, Turkey, is one of the largest bazaars in the city. Located in the Eminönü quarter of the Fatih district, it is the most famous covered shopping complex after the Grand Bazaar.

Source and further information

From the previous stop · Transfer · 1.1 km · ~11 min

Grand Bazaar

The Grand Bazaar in Istanbul is one of the largest and oldest covered markets in the world, with 61 covered streets and over 4,000 shops on a total area of 30,700 m2, attracting between 250,000 and 400,000 visitors daily. In 2014, it was listed No.1 among the world's most-visited tourist attractions with 91,250,000 annual visitors.

Source and further information

From the previous stop · Transfer · 1.1 km · ~11 min

Süleymaniye Mosque

The Süleymaniye Mosque is an Ottoman imperial mosque located on the Third Hill of Istanbul, Turkey. The mosque was commissioned by Suleiman the Magnificent and designed by the imperial architect Mimar Sinan. An inscription specifies the foundation date as 1550 and the inauguration date as 1557, although work on the complex probably continued for a few years after this.

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