Thing to do
Grand Bazaar
One of the world's oldest covered markets, begun in the 1450s, with 61 vaulted streets of carpet, jewellery, ceramics and textile shops.
A working Turkish bath designed by Mimar Sinan in 1584 for Nurbanu Sultan, with separate men's and women's sections near the Grand Bazaar.
Good to know
Commissioned by Nurbanu Sultan and designed by Mimar Sinan in 1584, Çemberlitaş is a double hamam with separate sections for men and women, and it has been washing Istanbul's residents and visitors for more than four centuries. You lie on the heated marble platform under a dome pierced with small star-shaped skylights before an attendant gets to work.
Basic entry includes towel, soap, shampoo, slippers and a changing cabin, and packages add the traditional kese scrub, a foam wash and oil massages. It opens from early morning until midnight every day. Message or call ahead to check availability at busy times, and allow at least an hour; it is a few steps from Çemberlitaş tram stop.
Reviewed by Lifestylemetro · Details checked October 23, 2026
Yes — it is a double hamam with separate sections for men and women.
Basic admission includes a towel, soap, shampoo, slippers and a changing cabin, with no time limit; scrubs and massages cost extra.
Bar
A long-running bar, restaurant and late-night club on the top floor of the historic Mısır Apartment on İstiklal Avenue, with panoramic city views.
Hotel
A five-star Kempinski hotel built around a restored 19th-century Ottoman palace on the Bosphorus shore, with an infinity pool and 317 rooms.
Tour operator
The neighbourhood food-tour company that began in Istanbul in 2009 as Istanbul Eats, known for its day-long Two Markets, Two Continents walk.
Attraction
Justinian's sixth-century domed basilica, now the Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque, with a separate visitor route through its upper galleries above the prayer hall.