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Whether you take a traditional Istanbul ferryboat, or a smaller, faster TurYol , Dentur Avrasya, or other boat, you're sure to enjoy a tour-cruise up the Bosphorus. You can do it in as little as 1.5 hours.

You set out from one of several ferryboat docks, including the Eminönü ferryboat docks (on the Golden Horn between Galata Bridge and Sirkeci Station), Kabataş docks, Beşiktaş docks, or Üsküdar docks and head north toward the Black Sea. More...

Here are the sights you'll see (including six Ottoman palaces), divided into two parts, the Southern Bosphorus (from the Golden Horn and city center to the Bosphorus Bridge) and the Northern Bosphorus, (from the Bosphorus Bridge to the Black Sea):

Southern Bosphorus
The most impressive sights are along the southern shores of the Bosphorus, nearest to the city: Topkapı Palace, the mid-Bosphorus Maiden's Tower, the Selimiye Barracks (where Florence Nightingale worked), Dolmabahçe Palace, Çirağan Palace, Yıldız Park & Palace, the chic art-boutique-and-cafe scene in the village of Ortaköy, the pretty Ottoman baroque Mecidiye Mosque, and the Bosphorus Bridge. More...

Northern Bosphorus
Beyond the Bosphorus Bridge there's plenty more to see: Beylerbeyi Palace, the village of Çengelköy, Kuleli Naval Academy, Arnavutköy with its photogenic Ottoman yalıs (wooden Bosphorus seaside mansions), Rumeli Hisarı (the mighty Fortress of Europe), the town of Bebek with its pretty bay, and Bosphorus University.

North of the Fatih Bridge, second to be built across the Bosphorus, is Anadolu Hisarı (the Fortress of Anatolia), Küçüksu Kasrı (a fine little rococo palace), the Hidiv Kasrı (fine Art Nouveau villa built in 1900 for the Khedive of Egypt), the pretty restaurant village of Tarabya, the town of Büyükdere (with its excellent Sadberk Hanım Museum), and Sarıyer (with a fish market and several seafood restaurants on the shore).

Rumeli Kavağı (the farthest northern dock on the European shore of the Bosphorus), and Anadolu Kavağı (the final dock on the Bosphorus cruise-tour) are about 10 km (6 miles) south of the Black Sea, but these docks are as far as the Bosphorus cruises go.

If you take the traditional ferry's Bosphorus tour all the way to the end, you will have to wait three hours at the northern terminus of Anadolu Kavağı for the ferry's departure for the return to Istanbul. But you can get off the boat in Sarıyer, have lunch, then ride south along the shore.

If you take the TurYol or other small boat, you'll be back at the Galata Bridge in less than an hour.

You should know that Backpackers Travel operates a great value-for-money half-day tour that takes you on the TurYol Bosphorus cruise and also visits the Egyptian (Spice) Bazaar, the Galata Tower, Tünel, Galata Bridge, and Karaköy (Galata) Square all in one afternoon for a very good price. More...

Here's how to tour the European shore of the Bosphorus by road from Sarıyer to Istanbul, and here's an hour-by-hour itinerary to hit the main sights.

Bosphorus European Shore Tour Bosphorus Day-Trip Cruise Southern Bosphorus Sights Northern Bosphorus Sights Traditional Ferryboat Cruise TurYol Bosphorus Cruise About The Bosphorus Dolmabahçe Palace Beylerbeyi Palace Princes Islands Istanbul Sights Istanbul Hotels Istanbul Restaurants Istanbul Homepage

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