TurkeyTravelPlanner.com Bosphorus Cruise Boats, Istanbul

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Bright Sun

Waterside Mansion (Yalı) on the Bosphorus, Istanbul, Turkey
Waterside mansion (yalı)
on the Bosphorus...

Çirağan Palace Hotel Kempinski, Istanbul, Turkey

 

You have a variety of ways to enjoy a Bosphorus cruise:

Şehir Hatları Ferryboats

These are the big traditional Istanbul passenger ferryboats beloved by Istanbullus. Take your choice of:

—The Long Tour (Uzun Boğaz Turu), a 6-hour round-trip cruise departing daily at 10:35 am from Eminönü and 15 minutes later from Beşiktaş, calling at Kanlıca, Sarıyer and Rumeli Kavağı before arriving at Anadolu Kavağı, the northernmost dock on the Asian shore. Enjoy lunch at one of the many seafood restaurants near the ferry dock during the 3-hour layover, then cruise back to the city, arriving at Eminönü in late afternoon. More...

—The Short Tour (Kısa Boğaz Turu), a 2-hour round-trip departing Eminönü and Üsküdar daily in mid-afternoon, goes north of the Fatih Bridge making no stops enroute, turns around and returns. The Short Tour does not operate from November through March (but the even shorter cruises operated by TurYol and Dentur Avrasya do—see below.) Fare is TL10.

—The Moonlight Cruise (Mehtap Gezisi), a two-hour round-trip leisure cruise, departs Saturday evenings in the warmer months. Fare is TL20.

TurYol

TurYol operates the most frequent 1-1/2-hour Bosphorus cruises, departing Eminönü on the hour, with additional voyages from Üsküdar and Kadıköy.

The number of voyages depends on the time of year, with fewer in winter, when the few voyages will probably be in the middle of the day; and summer, when there may be hourly cruises throughout the day. More...

Dentur Avrasya

A worthy competitor to TurYol, Dentur Avrasya Bosphorus cruises depart from Kabataş, Beşiktaş, Üsküdar, and Avcılar (west of Atatürk Airport).

You can easily reach the Kabataş dock by the T1 Bağcılar-Kabataş tram. More...

Boğaziçi YolTur & EMTUR

Two smaller companies, EMTUR and Boğaziçi YolTur, launch their Bosphorus cruises from next to the Şehir Hatları temporary Bosphorus Cruise Dock just east of the Galata Bridge at the Eminönü (southern end) of the bridge (map).

Boğaziçi YolTur ferryboats depart every hour on the half-hour between 11:30 am and 19:30 (7:30 pm) on a 2-hour cruise calling at Dolmabahçe, Beşiktaş, Ortaköy, Fatih Bridge, Kandilli, Beylerbeyi, Üsküdar and Leander's Tower (Kız Kulesi) before returning to Eminönü.

Other Boats

There are yet more boats. Walk west from the Eminönü end of Galata Bridge, past the Golden Horn ferry dock (Eminönü Haliç İskelesi) and toward the big T. C. Istanbul Ticaret Üniversitesi building and you'll see dozens of boats moored along the shore advertising Bosphorus cruises and charter trips. I don't know these boats and can't vouch for their reliability.


 

About Bosphorus Cruises

What You'll See on a Cruise

The Bosphorus

Southern Bosphorus Sights

Northern Bosphorus Sights

Princes Islands

Istanbul Sights

Istanbul Hotels

Istanbul Restaurants

Istanbul Transport

Istanbul Homepage

 

 
Istanbul Ferryboat on Bosphorus Cruise
Above, my favorite spot for a Bosphorus cruise: on the upper deck at the stern of a traditional ferryboat—Bright Sun, Strong Tea!

Below, the TurYol Bosphorus cruise dock just west of the Eminönü end of Galata Bridge.

 

TurYol Bosphorus Cruise Dock, Istanbul, Turkey
Boğaziçi YolTur Bosphorus Cruise boat, Istanbul, Turkey
Boğaziçi YolTur Bosphorus cruise boat
at Eminönü, Istanbul.