The former capital of the Ottoman Empire is now the most interesting city of Turkey and the largest metropolis of the Balkan Peninsula. In Europe, only Moscow, Paris and London can be compared to the scale with Istanbul. Walking in Istanbul, from the historic center to the outskirts, it is interesting to observe how urban architecture changes, from ancient and medieval to modern Turkish.
Transport
In Istanbul, three airports, two in European parts and one in the Asian. The last less interesting. Getting to the city by air is easy both from the cities of Turkey and from around the world. All airports look civile and are associated with the city.Public transport in Istanbul is one of the most diverse in the world. This is due to the location of the metropolis on the border of Europe and Asia. The tourist can move on bus, buses, both ordinary and high-speed lines. And on the subway, the tram, the funicular, an urban train. The historical types of transport include a retro tram and tunnel, that is, underground funicular. Unique flavoring the city gives water transport. You can navigate not only between the European and Asian parts, but also swim on the princes of the island in the Marmara Sea. Already on the first day of the visit, it is useful to purchase "Istanbulkart". There will be discounts for transfers and the card itself will become a good souvenir.
sights
By a variety of museums, Istanbul is inferior to Moscow and St. Petersburg. Their significantly less and exposure, for example, the military and the maritime museum are inferior to Russian counterparts. Those who want to see the Sultan Palaces and Museums of the Historical Center are useful to purchase a museum card. It acts a few days and if you visit objects on dense graphics, it will be a good discount.
In the European part of the city there is an interesting archaeological museum, Panorama of the storm of 1453, Park Miniature Open-air and Technical Museum Rahmi Koch. It is worth climbing the Galata Tower, preferably at different times of the day. In the European part of the city, the vintage fortresses were preserved - Rusheli Hisar and Rusheli Fineri. Until the latter, you need to go from the center for buses with a transfer to the north. It stands at the beginning of the Bosphorus Strait, on the Black Sea shore, not far from the lighthouse. Be sure to take a walk on the pedestrian street Ostiklal. Next to her there is a consular consulate and monument, where not only Ataturk is depicted, but Frunze with Voroshilov.
The Asian part of the city is not as interesting, but it is worth looking into the museum of vintage toys and drove on the bus in the northeast direction of the suburbs shile. There you can see the remains of the fortress on the island and beaches on the Black Sea coast.
Food and accommodation
Hotels in Megapolis are many, from cheap to expensive five-star. In the low season, you can even book anything. In the historical center, near Ayia Sophia, there are cheap options overnight chairs, for example, hostels with shared rooms, where 6-8 people are placed on double-decker beds. Through the hospitality sites like Kauratsurfing, you can find a Russian or English-speaking host and spend the night of it for free.There are no problems with public catering in Turkey. The cheapest institutions are called "Lockacants". These are cutlery self-service with the price at the level of Russian. Restaurants are interested in visiting "1924" near the Galat Tower. It serves Russian and Georgian dishes, and so you can find almost any cuisine of the world, a huge city is still.
Preparation for the trip
Istanbul is interested in visiting at any time of the year. If you do not like the summer heat, that is, it makes sense to come to Navruz in the middle of March. On April 23, Independence Day is celebrated in Turkey, and on October 29, when it is still warm and ends the swimming season, the Republic of the Republic. You can spend in Istanbul and New Year holidays. During the snowfall, the city is beautiful in its own way. In the rare frosty January days the number of tourists in it is minimal, therefore the cost of the night is lower, and there are more free places, you can not booke in advance. Exception - New Year holidays.
You can get detailed information about the former capital of the Ottoman Empire on various resources on the Internet, for example, at https://mystanbul-life.info/.