• The Insider
  • Planning
  • Sightseeing
  • Transportation
  • Food & Drinks
  • Going Out
  • Shopping
  • FAQ
  • Tours

Istanbul Insider

Istanbul travel guide and advice by locals.

Overview of the Main Tourist Areas in Istanbul

Istanbul is a huge city, consisting of no less than 39 districts. Each of these districts contain several towns – among which famous ones like Sultanahmet and Taksim. Luckily, finding your way around town as a tourist is not that difficult as long as you keep the big picture in mind. I therefore divided the city into the following six (not too big) areas, housing most of the tourist attractions:

  • Historical Peninsula (purple), south of the Golden Horn
  • Contemporary Istanbul (red), north of the Golden Horn
  • the area along the Golden Horn (blue)
  • the shores of the Bosphorus (green)
  • the Asian shore (pink)
  • the Princes’ Islands (not on the map)
Overview of Istanbul Tourist Areas
Overview of Istanbul tourist areas

Historical Peninsula

Boroughs: Beyazıt, Eminönü, Fatih, Kumkapı, Mercan, Sirkeci, Sultanahmet, Tahtakale, Eminönü
Sightseeing spots: Archaeology Museums, Basilica Cistern, Blue Mosque, Grand Bazaar, Hagia Sophia, Harem, Hippodrome, Museum of Hagia Eirene, Topkapı Palace, Süleymaniye Mosque, Spice Bazaar

Contemporary Istanbul

Boroughs: Beyoğlu, Beşiktaş, Cihangir, Galata, Karaköy, Nişantaşı, Ortaköy, Şişli, Taksim, Tophane, Tünel, Yıldız
Sightseeing spots: Dolmabahçe Palace, Flower Passage, Galata Tower, Istanbul Modern, Istiklal Caddesi, Nevizade, Taksim Square, Tünel, Shopping Centers

Along the Golden Horn

Boroughs: Balat, Eyüp, Fener, Sütlüce
Sightseeing spots: Rahmi Koç Museum, Miniatürk, Pierre Lotti, Orthodox Patriarchate

Shores of the Bosphorus

Boroughs: Arnavutköy, Bebek, Hisar, Istinye, Kuruçeşme
Sightseeing spots: Fortress of Europe, Historical Houses, Istinye Shopping Center, Open-air Night Clubs,

The Asian Shore: Kadıköy, Moda

Boroughs: Fenerbahçe, Kadıköy, Moda, Üsküdar
Sightseeing spots: Bahariye Caddesi, Bağdat Caddesi, Fenerbahçe Marina, Fortress of Anatolia

The Princes’ Islands

Islands: Burgazada, Büyükada, Heybeliada, Kınalıada
Sightseeing / Activities: Monastery of St George, wooden mansions, horse-drawn carriage rides, bicycle tours, beaches

Beyond the City Center

Boroughs: Bakırköy, Beykoz, Sarıyer
Sightseeing spots: Anadolu Feneri, Kilyos, Istanbul New Airport, Şile, Ağva, Polonezköy, Riva, Bakırköy, Florya, Beykoz Park

Filed Under: Holiday Planning

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Best Sellers

  • Email
  • RSS
  • Twitter

About Us

About
Contact
Frequently Asked Questions
Sitemap

Popular Attractions

Hagia Sophia
Topkapi Palace & Harem
Dolmabahçe Palace
Bosphorus Tour
Whirling Dervishes

Travel Tips

Accommodation & Locations
Airport Transportation
Istanbul Kart, Museum Pass, Tourist Pass
Public Transportation
Taxi’s in Istanbul

© 2011–2023 The Istanbul Insider – Terms of Service • Privacy Policy • Affiliate Disclaimer
Istanbul Insider
Data and Cookie Consent
To provide the best experiences, we and our partners use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us and our partners to process personal data such as browsing behaviour or unique IDs on this site.
Click below to consent ('Accept') to the above or make granular choices
Manage Cookie SettingsACCEPT
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.

Your choices on this site will be applied only for this site. You can change your settings at any time, including withdrawing your consent, by going to the Privacy Policy page of this site.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-advertisement1 yearThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Advertisement".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
CookieDurationDescription
_gat1 minuteThis cookies is installed by Google Universal Analytics to throttle the request rate to limit the colllection of data on high traffic sites.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
CookieDurationDescription
_ga2 yearsThis cookie is installed by Google Analytics. The cookie is used to calculate visitor, session, campaign data and keep track of site usage for the site's analytics report. The cookies store information anonymously and assign a randomly generated number to identify unique visitors.
_gid1 dayThis cookie is installed by Google Analytics. The cookie is used to store information of how visitors use a website and helps in creating an analytics report of how the website is doing. The data collected including the number visitors, the source where they have come from, and the pages visted in an anonymous form.
visitor_id5 yearsThis cookie include cookie name plus the unique identifier of the visitor account. The value stored is the unique ID of the visitor which is used for tracking the visitor.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.