6 Essentials: what to see in Beyoglu, a modern neighborhood in Istanbul

beyoglu is trendy neighborhood in Istanbul.

It's in the european side of the city, but it is very different from the historic center where the best-known great monuments are located such as the Grand Bazaar, Hagia Sophia, Suleiman Mosque and Topkapi palace.

In fact, beyoglu always represented modern istanbul, the one who looked beyond borders.

It is the area where foreign communities established embassies and churches, and where in the 20th century the great hotels, the most luxurious shops and the most sumptuous private buildings were built.

Beyoglu, modern neighborhood of Istanbul

Everything stopped in time when capital of Türkiye moved to Ankara and the neighborhood fell into a kind of lethargy.

However beyoglu It has recovered in the last couple of decades and now once again represents modernity, while maintaining part of the spirit of decades ago.

This area is located north of Golden horn —the estuary that divides the European part of Istanbul— and it is one of the essential places to visit on any trip to Istanbul.

El galata bridge It is the main one that allows you to cross the Golden horn and connect the historic center with beyoglu.

The axis of the neighborhood is Istiklal Caddesia, Independence Avenue, which extends between the Taksim Square and Tunel.

Tunnel It is the upper end of a historical funicular which allows you to climb to the top of the hill from the galata bridge.

Although it may not be apparent at first glance, the avenue runs along the crest of a hill, which will at some point provide the best surprises of the route.

In this area there are many hotels, making it one of the favorite places for visitors to look for accommodation.

How to go to Beyoglu in Istanbul

Those who prefer to stay in the historic center can easily access beyoglu in different ways.

One is to go by tram until the stop kabatas and then go up to the taksim square in a underground funicular.

From there you can tour the area following the Istliklal Avenue but also Tunnel and go down to galata bridge, where you take the tram again at the station Karakoy, next to the aforementioned bridge.

This route can also be done in the opposite direction and go up on foot or on the Tunnel funicular, which has been in operation since 1875 and is one of the oldest in the world.

What to see and do when visiting Beyoglu

En istiklal and the nearby streets where many worlds coexist.

Perhaps the least interesting is that of the international brand stores that we can find in all the great avenues of the world (although their number is not excessive).

It would be better to alternate between those two sides of Istanbul: the traditional one with style - which links with the end of the 19th century and the first half of the 20th - and the more modern and avant-garde one.

Taksim Square in Istanbul

La taksim square It is one of the nerve centers of contemporary Istanbul.

It is not a particularly beautiful place but we must highlight the bustle that always dominates this large open space, in the center of which stands the monument to the Republic.

The two most important buildings are the Atatürk Cultural Center and hotel Marmara Istanbul.

To take a look at the atmosphere of this square from a privileged viewpoint, you can eat or drink something on the terrace of the Kitchenette restaurant bar, on the ground floor of the Marmara Istanbul.

In this area the Barceló Istanbul hotel., a good option to stay, and the newest in the series of establishments that this chain has in Istanbul.

The bar-restaurant located on the roof, the B Heaven, offers great views of the city, especially in the late afternoon.

La Istliklal Avenue It is the axis of the tour through the neighborhood, although it is advisable to take several detours to visit places in the nearby streets.

The avenue, completely pedestrianized, is only traversed by a traditional tram.

From Partition, before starting to walk down the Istikla avenuel, it is possible to go around the first block on the left to find one of the first places that should be visited to understand the history of this neighborhood and, in fact, of the entire city.

Haghia Triada Orthodox Church in Istanbul

This is the Haghia Triada Orthodox Church, from the end of the 19th century.

One of the reasons why it is not easy to see this church from a distance is that Ottoman custom prohibited towers of non-Muslim buildings from standing out in the urban landscape.

A throwback to the classic commercial era of beyoglu are passages, commercial galleries copied from the French model from the time of the Second empire.

Commercial passages in Beyoglu

One of the best known in Çicek Pasaji, Flower Passage, one of the most stylish addresses in Istanbul at the time of the Orient Express.

Nearby is the Avrupa Pasaji, European Pass, which is also worth a look.

In the side streets in this area it is worth walking in search of several places such as the Balik Pazar (The Fish market), and several traditional shops.

One of our favorites is Üç Yildiza cake shop which follows a family tradition started in 1926 and sells the best Turkish delicacies with strawberry, mint, rose or bergamot flavors and, above all, the jams made in the back room.

We recommend the one with rose petals.

On another nearby street there is Üç Horan Ermeni Kilisesi (The Armenian Church of the Three Altars) And the British Consulate General.

La Galatasaray square It is the place where Istlikal avenue makes a turn, and its most prominent building is the Lyceum.

In an alley is the Cafe Ara (Tosbag Sokak 8th), decorated with photographs of istanbul Ara Güller, one of the most recognized Turkish photographers.

A fairly steep street that starts right there goes down towards the area of ​​the Bosphorus.

Museum of Innocence in Istanbul

It is the path that must be taken in search of the extraordinary Museum of Innocence (Çukurkuma Cad.) created by the writer Orham Pamuk, Nobel Prize for Literature, which evokes the last decades of the city's history through thousands of small objects.

The museum of innocence It is also the title of one of his novels.

It should be noted that in this area of ​​the neighborhood there are several antique dealers.

Istliklal Avenue in Istanbul

Back to Istliklal you can wander around the other side in search of the Pera Museum (Mesrutiyet Cad. 65), where it is exhibited The turtle trainer, the work of Osman Hamdi Bey which is considered the canon of Turkish painting.

On the same street is the hotel Pera Palas (Mesrutiyet Cad. 98-100), where the passengers of the Orient Express and where the room he occupied is preserved Agatha Christie.

Throughout the Istliklal Avenue we are finding several European consulates, such as Swedish, Russian, Greek and Dutch, which usually occupy interesting buildings.

In this part of the avenue there are also the churches of San Antonio de Padua y Saint Mary Draperis.

Another type of business flourishing on the avenue is the ice cream parlors and pastry shops, all very tempting.

There are also some traditional businesses such as libraries, antique dealers and some coffee.

In this area there are many galleries and art centers; one of the most interesting is gallery (Istiklal Cad. 311) which offers the work of very interesting young artists.

Viewing terraces, bars and restaurants in Beyoglu

You can take advantage of the visit to then go up to the eighth floor, where it is 360, one of the bars-restaurants with the best views in the world.

From the terrace the view extends over the Bosphorus and the old part of the city.

There are more bars and restaurants with similar views, and among them we must highlight Leb-i Derya Richmond, (Istiklal Cad. 445), on the sixth floor of the Richmond Hotel, And above all the Much (Mesrutiyet Cad. 167), on the top floor of the hotel Marmara Pera.

The Mikla It has the reputation of being the most stylish bar in the city; On the roof there is a less sophisticated bar, but where you think you can fly over the city.

At mealtime, the highest concentration of bars and restaurants is in the Nevizade Sokak alleys (behind of Çicek Pasaji) Y Sofyali Sokak (near the Tunnel station), which reach their maximum atmosphere at night.

Another authentically Turkish facet of this neighborhood is found in the Museum of Courtesan Literature (Divan Edebiyati Müzesi, Galipdede Cad. 15), near Tunnel, also known as Galata Mevlevi Lodge.

In a building that was an old monastery of the whirling dervishes, and currently you can witness the ceremonies.

Finally, if we walk down towards the galata bridge Through the liveliest streets we will find the Galata Tower, built in the 14th century, and one of the most notable structures in the historical istanbul.