Home
Search
Maps of Turkey
Photo Gallery

Where to Go
When to Go
Where to Stay
What It Costs
Turkish Money
Transport
FAQ-Travel Details

Best Itineraries
Guided Tours
Travel Agency
Unusual Trips
Consultations

TTP Forums
Funny Stuff
Shopping
Site Index
Bright Sun

North of Dolmabahçe Palace on the European shore of the Bosphorus is Beşiktaş, one of Metropolitan Istanbul's many municipalities (sub-cities, boroughs).

Beşiktaş is a major transportation nexus, where the avenue along the European shore meets Barbaros Bulvarı, the main thoroughfare inland, westward, to Istanbul's skyscraper business districts. This important intersection is right next to the Beşiktaş Ferry Dock serving ferry boats that cross the Bosphorus to the Asian shore at Üsküdar, and some that travel up and down the strait on Bosphorus cruises.

Besides its half-dozen luxury hotels (Conrad Istanbul Hotel, Four Seasons Hotel at the Bosphorus, Çirağan Palace Kempinski Hotel, Radisson Blu Hotel, and Shangri-la Hotel), Beşiktaş boasts several distinguished academic institutions, including campuses of Bahçeşehir University, Galatasaray University, Beşiktaş Anadolu Lisesi, and a maritime academy.

People come here to visit the Maritime Museum and the Palace Collections Museum, but also to wander in Beşiktaş's interesting market district (çarşı) complete with fish market, and perhaps to dine in one of the market's many restaurants away from the tourist throngs.

For a respite from the concrete city, there's an entire hillside covered in the greenery of Yıldız Parkı, with its three Ottoman-era restaurants and one impressive palace, the Yıldız Şale Köşkü (Star Chalet Kiosk). More...

Perhaps the easiest way to reach Beşiktaş by public transport is to take the Bağcılar-Kabataş tram or Kabataş-Taksim Funicular to the Kabataş stop, then catch a bus going up the European shore of the Bosphorus.

A longer but perhaps more satisfying way is to board a ferryboat at Eminönü, cruise across the Bosphorus to Üsküdar on the Asian shore, then board a ferry at an adjoining dock for the cruise to Beşiktaş back on the European shore. Total round-trip intercontintal voyage time is 45 minutes to an hour, total cost less than TL5.

To return to the city center, take any bus heading south from Beşiktaş to Eminönü, Kabataş, Karaköy, or Taksim Square.