Bosphorus Strait

We love spending time on the Bosphorus exploring the various stops most which can be compared to cities within a city. If one can avoid peak travel times the outings are fabulous probably the best values for money at Istanbul. Definitely not to be missed

I was advised by my hotel concierge to take a boat that departs from the area close to the Dolmabahce Palace. The boat tour lasts for nearly two hours and stops in three destinations. You can hop on and off any of the boats free of charge.
The cost for this trip was 60 TRY, which is just over £3, and was the best value boat tour I've ever taken.
There is so much to see along the shore, palaces, mosques, villas, grand buildings, stunning houses, castles, bridges and private yachts.
I departed at 1.45 as I knew the light would be good for both legs of the journey.
Unfortunately I can to remember the name of the company, as I paid in cash and disposed of the receipt. I thoroughly recommend this trip, particularly as some companies charge 10 time the price.

We did the Bosphorus Strait boat tour, its €20 Euros and really worth it. It was perfect, 3 hours long, you see loads of the city. We went for the 12.00 tour and it was very relaxes, snacks available as extra on the boat.

So we were walking from our hotel to cross over the bridge and there was a guy standing by a boat with a sign 20tl each for 90 minute ride, so much as we had other plans we jumped on the boat and sat up top and went for the ride we really enjoyed although it did get a little cold.
Gives you a good idea of how big Istanbul is and the fact it’s so divided and the difference in culture from one side to the other by the different buildings.
All in all a good trip and well worth the money we paid beware ticket touts charging more money

The Bosphorus is the canal that connects the Black Sea to the sea of Marmara, the Mediterranean Sea. It is super busy with the ships, ferry boats, and tour boats crossing it all day and night. The site is wonderful and you can see it all the time when in Istanbul. The bridges connect the continents of Europe and Asia crossing the Bosphorus. If you have a chance get a cruise and sail the Bosphorus where you will see beautiful homes, hotels and palaces from the water.

This place has amazing views. Enjoy your coffee/lunch/dinner with peaceful sound of water smell the pure air. For some reason this place was more cooler than the istanbul city wind was cold here. Great place to visit and take pictures

The strait that separates between old Istanbul in Europe and new Istanbul in Asia. Cruises in the strait are very scenic with many attractions on both sides. There are short cruises which may take from minutes to a couple of hours, while other cruises may go as far as the entrance to the black sea, to a small fishermen village called Anadolu Kavagi, where you can take a hike to the Yoros castle over the hill and admire the view of the Black sea from above or just stay near the shore and enjoy a nice fish meal in very moderate prices. There is a much cheaper cruise on public ferries that takes 90 mins from Eminonu to Anadolu Kavagi and returns after 3 hours, and there is another weekly public sunset cruise with music and dancing and it returns after midnight.

Navigating through the Bosphorous is a must when in Istanbul, you will enjoy the boat ride, water, scenery and antique architecture. There are several tours available which you can book online or go directly to the dock. We found a tour worth 25 TL for a 1.5 hour tour enjoying the sunset.

I came across this strait from the Blue mosque on the way to Aya Sophia museum and it is a magnificent stretch of the sea crossing the city .I wanted to go close to see the strait but the area seems to be cordoned up from that side of the city, for security reasons i belive.But i manage to snap a picture with the strait as background with boat and ship moving on the strait.

The Bosphorus strait explains the unique position of Istanbul, partly in Europe and partly in Asia. The easiest way to enjoy it is to take a ferry which will bring you on the other side for around 0.80 EUR. In late autumn, the wind is pretty cold there.