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Beyoğlu

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Turkish delight shop, Istiklal Caddesi.

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Overview

The high-octane hub of eating, drinking and entertainment in the city, Beyoğlu is where visitors and locals come in search of good restaurants and bars, live-music venues, hip hotels and edgy boutiques. Built around the major boulevard of İstiklal Caddesi, it incorporates a mix of bohemian residential districts such as Çukurcuma and Cihangir, bustling entertainment enclaves such as Asmalımescit, and historically rich pockets such as Galata and Karaköy that have morphed into style centres.

Attractions

Must-see attractions

  • Museum of Innocence

    Museum of Innocence

    Beyoğlu

    The painstaking attention to detail in this fascinating museum/piece of conceptual art will certainly provide every amateur psychologist with a theory or…

  • Turkey, Istanbul Modern, Turkeys premier modern art gallery showcasing contemporary international art and photography.

    İstanbul Modern

    Beyoğlu

    This lavishly funded and innovative museum has an extensive collection of Turkish art and also stages a constantly changing and uniformly excellent…

  • Pera Museum

    Pera Museum

    Beyoğlu

    There's plenty to see at this impressive museum, but its major draw is undoubtedly the 2nd-floor exhibition of paintings featuring Turkish Orientalist…

  • İstiklal Caddesi

    İstiklal Caddesi

    Beyoğlu

    Once called the Grand Rue de Pera but renamed İstiklal (Independence) in the early years of the Republic, Beyoğlu's premier boulevard is a perfect…

  • Galata Mevlevi House Museum

    Galata Mevlevi House Museum

    Beyoğlu

    The semahane (whirling-dervish hall) at the centre of this tekke (dervish lodge) was erected in 1491 and renovated in 1608 and 2009. It's part of a…

  • Galata Tower.

    Galata Tower

    Beyoğlu

    The cylindrical Galata Tower stands sentry over the approach to 'new' İstanbul. Constructed in 1348, it was the tallest structure in the city for…

  • French Cultural Centre on İstiklal Caddesi

    İstanbul Fransız Kültür Merkezi

    Beyoğlu

    Set in a distinctive yellow building just off Taksim Square, the French Cultural Centre in İstanbul hosts regular art exhibitions (with a particular focus…

  • Fish Market

    Fish Market

    Beyoğlu

    Located opposite the grandiose entrance to the 1868 Galatasaray Lycée, one of the city's most prestigious educational institutions, this much-loved…

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