Sirkeci – the terminus of the Orient Express

When you are on the European side of Istanbul, you can hardly miss the historic Sirkeci railway station (Sirkeci Garı), which is now known as an important station for the Marmaray commuter train. Marmaray takes you beneath the Bosphorus from Europe to Asia. However, Sirkeci Station has been significant throughout history because it was once the eastern terminus of the Orient Express (Sirkeci Terminal), a famous train that traveled from Paris to Istanbul.

Istanbul guide for beginners

When we plan a trip, we hope to find as much information as possible about our destination – preferably even as easily as possible. As the information is often fragmented, I have compiled in this post both important general information about Istanbul as well as a variety of tips for your visit. In this post you will also find practical information about everyday life for your trip, for example, tips for the ways to commute in Istanbul. And please remember, I will publish new stories about the oriental wonders of dazzling Istanbul on my blog every month.

Ways to commute – part 2: public transport in Istanbul

In this post, I’ll tell you about public transport in Istanbul, and give you practical tips to help you get around the city with different means of transportation – exactly the kind of tips I would have appreciated during my first visits. After all, in Istanbul you can only speak English in the tourist area, so all the possible tips will be worth their weight in gold on your expeditions to explore this interesting metropolis.

Ways to commute – part 1: ´Istanbul Airport´ (İstanbul Havalimanı)

As I write this, Turkish society has reopened since the pandemic eased. Let´s hope that the situation will remain good and we will begin to enjoy traveling again. In this first part of my ´Ways to Commute´ -posts, I will tell you about Istanbul´s new airport (in part 2, I will tell you about the public transport in Istanbul). Despite its large size, the airport is a pleasant, easy, and friendly airport – and even visually charming. So let’s land in Istanbul – a warm welcome!

Istanbul Cable Car, Pierre Loti Hill & Turku Funicular, Kakolanmäki

In both cities of the seven hills, Istanbul and Turku, you will find one hill, the top of which you can reach using other methods than walking or driving by car. You can travel to Istanbul’s Pierre Loti Hill (Pierre Loti Tepesi) by cable car and Turku’s Kakolanmäki by funicular. Have you experienced either these means of transportation? And do you know the history of these hills? Do you know what you will find at the tops of these hills today?

10 most interesting and best things in Istanbul

Naturally the history is by far the best thing in Istanbul, and you can read basic information about it from the post “Seven hills cities”. Here I’ll introduce the important things that touches me at the moment of writing. Of course, it would be easy to list at least the 100 best things in Istanbul, and in the future you’ll get to know many of them through my posts. Even in addition to these, Istanbul always manages to surprise you; for example, have you ever, on the basis of a shop window, thought of going to a luxury cosmetics store that turned out to be a luxury butcher shop?