Istanbul's geography in one look
The Golden Horn, the Bosphorus and the Sea of Marmara from one point.
Nan Palmero from San Antonio, TX, USA — CC BY 2.0 · Photograph by Mike Peel (www.mikepeel.net). — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Photograph by Mike Peel (www.mikepeel.net). — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Photograph by Mike Peel (www.mikepeel.net). — CC BY-SA 4.0
A fourteenth-century stone tower on the Galata hill north of the Golden Horn, among the clearest landmarks on Istanbul's skyline. The Genoese built it in 1348 as part of the fortifications of their colony at Galata — an Italian merchant community living opposite Byzantine Constantinople under special privileges. The tower was the highest point of their walls and they called it the Tower of Christ. After the conquest it served various purposes over the centuries: a prison, a fire watchtower, an observation post. The view from the platform at the top is the reason to come: the Golden Horn and the historic city with its mosques to the south, the Bosphorus to the east, the Sea of Marmara and the islands beyond. This is the clearest place to understand Istanbul's geography — a city on two continents divided by water on three sides. Queues are very long in season and the platform is narrow, so booking ahead is advisable. The surrounding district — Galata and Beyoğlu — is worth walking in its own right, with its climbing streets and cafés.
The Golden Horn, the Bosphorus and the Sea of Marmara from one point.
Built by Genoese merchants in 1348, the highest point of their colony's walls.
The climbing streets and cafés around it are worth walking in themselves.
Galata, Beyoğlu
Spice BazaarA seventeenth-century covered market at Eminönü near the waterfront, known in Tu13 min walkSüleymaniye MosqueA sixteenth-century mosque on a hill overlooking the Golden Horn, counted among 17 min walk
Istanbul Archaeological MuseumsA complex of three museums below Gülhane Park beside Topkapı Palace, holding one21 min walk
Grand BazaarA covered market in the heart of historic Istanbul, among the oldest and largest22 min walkTopkapı PalaceThe principal seat of the Ottoman sultans for some four hundred years, on the he22 min walkThe view is genuinely excellent, but the ticket is high and queues can reach an hour at peak. The alternatives: rooftop cafés in Galata and Beyoğlu give a similar view for the price of a drink, and the Galata Bridge and Bosphorus ferries give the city from water level. Booked ahead and visited in the morning, the tower is worth it.
The long İstiklal Avenue with its historic red tram, Taksim Square at its end, the Galata Tower and its climbing lanes, and the Karaköy district at the water with its cafés. The whole area is walked in half a day and is modern Istanbul's face against historic Sultanahmet.
Sign in to write your review of this place.
No reviews yet — be the first.