Lonely Planet İstanbul Guide

make your way back to İstanbul by bus. Alternatively, take the Dentur Avraysa hop-on, hop-off tour from Kabataş.

Getting There & Away A Long Bosphorus Tour (Uzun Boğaz Turu) Most day-trippers take this ferry operated by İstanbul Şehir Hatları. It travels the entire length of the strait in a 95-minute one-way trip and departs from the iskele (ferry dock) at Eminönü daily at 10.35am, returning from Anadolu Kavağı at 3pm. A return ( çift ) ticket costs ₺ 25/free/12.50 per adult/child under six years/child six to 11 years; a one-way ( tek yön ) ticket costs ₺ 15/free/7.50. The ferry stops at Beşiktaş, Kanlıca, Sarıyer, Rumeli Kavağı and Anadolu Kavağı. It’s not possible to get on and off the ferry at stops along the way using the same ticket. A Short Bosphorus Tour (Kısa Boğaz Turu) From early March to May and from mid-September to October, İstanbul Şehir Hatları offers a two-hour tour leaving Eminönü daily at 2.30pm, picking up passengers in Ortaköy 20 minutes later. It travels as far as the Fatih Sultan Mehmet Bridge before returning to Eminönü. Tickets cost ₺ 12/free/6 per adult/child under six years/ child six to 11 years. From November to early March the service is limited to Saturdays, Sundays and holidays. A Hop-on, Hop-off Palace Tour Departing from the iskele behind the petrol station at Kabataş, this tour operated by Dentur Avrasya costs ₺ 15, leaves four times daily at 12.45pm, 1.45pm, 2.45pm and 3.45pm, and allows passengers to alight at Emirgan, Küçüksu Kasrı and Beylerbeyi Palace and reboard on the same ticket. It would be very rushed to make three stops in one afternoon but two stops is achievable. Be aware that Küçüksu Kasrı and Beylerbeyi Palace close at 3.30pm in winter and 4.30pm in summer. Dentur Avrasya also operates one long and short tour each day from Kabataş; check website for details.