Unusual Experiences in Turkey

Our unusual experiences in Turkey start from a single thread instead of a map. You follow street cats, a football crowd, the women of the Harem or a siege, and Istanbul falls in line behind it.

Why unusual experiences stay with you

A sightseeing day hands you a long list, and memory keeps a few items. A single-thread day works the other way, because each stop picks up from the last.

Four odd threads through Istanbul

The Istanbul cat tour begins with Sultanahmet’s cats and the story of Gli. Then it moves on to Cihangir and takes the ferry to Kadıköy for Tombili’s statue and Moda. The cats, we should admit, keep their own schedule.

On the Istanbul football match tour, we pick you up four to five hours before kick-off. You spend the build-up with home supporters and stop for köfte-ekmek on the way in. After the final whistle, you stay with local fans.

The Sultanate of Women tour follows Hürrem and Kösem through the Topkapı Harem, Hürrem’s hammam and tomb, and Kösem’s Valide Han. In 1541, after a fire at the Old Palace, Hürrem moved the harem into Topkapı. Finally, the Conquest of Constantinople tour tells 1453 day by day. It runs from Rumelihisarı, built in 1452, to the Golden Horn chain, the land walls, Panorama 1453 and the Fatih Mosque.

Our suggestion

Choose your unusual experiences by temperament. Families should start with the cat tour, since a ferry ride is part of the walk. History readers should take the conquest and the Sultanate of Women on back-to-back days. One explains the city, and the other explains the palace. Finally, the football day suits anyone who enjoys noise.

Mixing unusual experiences with the classics

One of these unusual experiences fits well after a first day at Hagia Sophia and the bazaars, because the thread gives day two its own logic. However, give the match a day to itself, since it starts hours before kick-off. A guide in Istanbul can also stitch the days together.