Topkapı Palace
The palace of the Ottoman sultans for almost four centuries, overlooking the meeting point of the Bosphorus and the Golden Horn.
Begun by Mehmed II after 1453, Topkapı was the administrative and residential heart of the empire until the mid-nineteenth century. Its four courtyards lead from the public Imperial Gate through the Council Hall and Treasury to private pavilions with sweeping views over the water.
Highlights include the Imperial Treasury with the Spoonmaker’s Diamond and Topkapı Dagger, the Holy Relics chamber, the palace kitchens with their porcelain collection, and the Harem — a separate section that is well worth the extra time.
- →Closed on Tuesdays. Plan the Old City day for another weekday.
- →Allow at least two and a half hours; three or more if the Harem is included.
- →Queues build quickly after 10:00 in high season — arrive at opening or use pre-arranged tickets.
Tours visiting this place
Hotels nearby
An intimate luxury hotel in a restored early twentieth-century building, set around a garden courtyard in the heart of Sultanahmet.
A well-run four-star hotel in Sultanahmet, known for its rooftop restaurant overlooking the historic peninsula.
A landmark luxury hotel on the Karaköy waterfront, created from three historic buildings and a new wing within Galataport.
Places nearby
- Hagia Sophia0.4 km
The sixth-century Byzantine cathedral, later an Ottoman mosque — the defining monument of Istanbul.
- Basilica Cistern0.6 km
A sixth-century underground cistern of 336 marble columns, with the famous Medusa heads.
- Sultan Ahmed Mosque (Blue Mosque)0.9 km
Sultan Ahmed I’s imperial mosque, famous for its six minarets and blue İznik-tiled interior.
- Spice Bazaar (Mısır Çarşısı)1.2 km
The seventeenth-century Egyptian Bazaar at Eminönü — spices, Turkish delight, nuts, dried fruit and teas.
- Grand Bazaar (Kapalıçarşı)1.3 km
One of the oldest and largest covered markets in the world — a labyrinth of vaulted streets, hans and thousands of shops.
- Süleymaniye Mosque1.7 km
Mimar Sinan’s masterpiece for Süleyman the Magnificent, crowning the third hill above the Golden Horn.