تور روستاهای تنگه بسفر: کشتی، پیاده‌روی و مسیر یک‌روزه

You can see the best of the Bosphorus villages in one day by walking the European shore from Ortaköy through Arnavutköy and Bebek to Rumeli Hisarı, then crossing by city ferry to Kanlıca on the Asian side and sailing back down that shore to Üsküdar. The strait is 31 km long, and the northern villages, Sarıyer and the two Kavaks near the Black Sea, make a second day by ferry or car. Below are the villages shore by shore, the ferries that actually stop at them, walking distances, a timed route and where to eat. If you would rather have the boat and the guide arranged, our full-day Bosphorus cruise and two-continents tour is from $88 per person.

This page is about the villages; for the strait's palaces, cruises and yachts, see things to do on the Bosphorus.

The villages at a glance

These are the villages worth stopping in, from south to north on each shore:

Monday is the worst day for the villages, since the fortress, Beylerbeyi Palace, Küçüksu Pavilion and the Sakıp Sabancı Museum all close.

The European shore, village by village

Ortaköy. The Ortaköy Mosque, commissioned by Sultan Abdülmecid I and completed around 1854 or 1856 by the architects Garabet and Nikoğos Balyan, stands on the pier square almost under the Bosphorus Bridge, now the 15 July Martyrs Bridge. The streets behind the square are lined with kumpir shops, the loaded baked potatoes that Istanbul identifies with Ortaköy.

Arnavutköy. Its waterfront has some of the most picturesque surviving late 19th and early 20th-century wooden houses on the Bosphorus, many with Art Nouveau decoration, and it is known for its seafood restaurants. Robert College, founded in 1863, has its campus here. Since 28 October 2026, Şehir Hatları ferries no longer call at Arnavutköy pier while it is repaired, until further notice, so arrive on foot or by bus.

Bebek. On Bebek Bay, the great waterfront mansion that houses the Egyptian Consulate was built between 1899 and 1901 for the mother of the last Khedive of Egypt, and the small Bebek Mosque was designed in 1912 by Kemaleddin Bey. Meşhur Bebek Badem Ezmesi, a marzipan maker set up in 1904, sells marzipan and almond cookies.

Rumeli Hisarı. Rumeli Fortress was built in 1452 by Mehmed II, the year before he took Constantinople. The museum charges foreign adults €6. In winter (1 November to 1 March) it opens from 09:00 to 17:00, with the ticket office closing at 16:00, and it is closed on Mondays. The walls and towers are closed to visitors for safety and restoration.

Emirgan. Emirgan Park, run by the city, holds the Istanbul Tulip Festival every April, and its three 19th-century wooden pavilions, the Yellow, Pink and White, serve as cafés and a restaurant. The Sakıp Sabancı Museum, with Ottoman calligraphy and visiting exhibitions, opens from 10:00 to 18:00 and is closed on Mondays; a full ticket costs 450 TL. For April dates, see our Istanbul tulip festival 2027 page.

Sarıyer. The district's fishing industry feeds a local fish market and a long line of fish restaurants. Sarıyer börek, filled with minced meat, cheese, potato or spinach, is said to have been first made here at the end of the 19th century. The Sadberk Hanım Museum at Büyükdere, in a 19th-century wooden waterside mansion and a neighbouring wing, opens 10:00 to 17:00 except on Wednesdays, for 450 TL.

Rumeli Kavağı. Once a small fishing village, it is the last stop of the Eminönü ferry, with the Yavuz Sultan Selim Bridge, the third bridge, to the north.

The Asian shore, village by village

Kuzguncuk. A quiet valley village of Ottoman wooden houses, with the Bet Yaakov Synagogue of 1878, Armenian and Greek Orthodox churches, and a mosque built in 1952 in the courtyard of the Armenian church. Film crews use its streets as a ready-made set.

Beylerbeyi. Beylerbeyi Palace stands on the shore just below the Asian end of the Bosphorus Bridge. It is closed on Mondays, the ticket office works from 09:00 to 17:00, and foreign visitors pay 800 TL. Our Beylerbeyi Palace and Çamlıca Hill morning tour is from $52 per person.

Çengelköy to Kandilli. Çengelköy was once famous for the small cucumbers grown there, which now come from Kandıra. Further north, Anadolu Hisarı, built in 1393–94 by Bayezid I, stands at the mouth of the Göksu creek, and the Küçüksu Pavilion, an 1856–57 royal lodge on the water, is open except on Mondays, with foreign visitors paying 300 TL.

Kanlıca. Known across Istanbul for its yoghurt sprinkled with sugar, sold in the local cafés. It is the starting point of the annual 6.5 km Bosphorus Cross-Continental Swim.

Anadolu Kavağı. The fishing village at the northern end, where the long Bosphorus tour stops for lunch at its many fish restaurants. Above it, ruined Yoros Castle, often called the Genoese Castle, looks out over the Black Sea and the third bridge. It reopened to visitors after excavations from 2018 to 2021, but the military land around it is closed. It is about 900 m uphill by road from the pier.

Getting between the villages: ferries, buses and walking

Ferries. The city ferries are the best tool for village-hopping. These are the useful lines in the Şehir Hatları winter timetable, valid from 7 September 2026 to 27 June 2027:

Commuter ferries take the Istanbulkart; the long tour has its own fare and waits at Anadolu Kavağı until 15:00. Our self-guided Bosphorus ferry guide covers that tour in detail, and our Istanbul public transport fares update lists ferry fares.

Buses. On the European shore, bus 22 (Kabataş to İstinye) stops at Ortaköy, Kuruçeşme, Arnavutköy, Bebek, Rumeli Hisarı, Baltalimanı and Emirgan, and 22B runs from Kabataş to Bebek; 25E links Baltalimanı, Emirgan and Sarıyer. On the Asian shore, bus 15 (Üsküdar to Beykoz) stops at Kuzguncuk, Beylerbeyi, Çengelköy, Vaniköy, Kandilli, Anadolu Hisarı and Kanlıca, and 15A serves Anadolu Kavağı from Kavacık.

Walking. The stretches below follow the shore road, with distances from OpenStreetMap routing:

• Ortaköy to Arnavutköy, about 3.1 km; Arnavutköy to Bebek, about 1.2 km; Bebek to Rumeli Hisarı, about 1.7 km; Rumeli Hisarı to Emirgan, about 2 km.
• Üsküdar to Kuzguncuk, about 1.7 km; Kandilli to Anadolu Hisarı, about 1.7 km; Anadolu Hisarı to Kanlıca, about 2.3 km.
• Sarıyer to Rumeli Kavağı, about 2.6 km.

A one-day route, Tuesday to Saturday

This plan uses the November winter timetable and avoids every Monday closure.

1. 09:30, Ortaköy. The mosque and the pier square, by taxi or bus 22.
2. 10:00, walk north. Along the shore road to Arnavutköy for the wooden houses, then on to Bebek, about 4.3 km in all.
3. 11:30, Bebek. Coffee by the bay and a box of marzipan.
4. 12:00, walk to Rumeli Hisarı, about 1.7 km, and visit the fortress, open until 17:00 in winter.
5. 13:30, lunch by the water in Rumeli Hisarı or back in Bebek.
6. 15:40, the ring ferry from Bebek. It crosses to Kandilli and Anadolu Hisarı and reaches Kanlıca at 16:05.
7. 16:05, Kanlıca. Yoghurt sprinkled with sugar in a café near the pier.
8. 16:50, the Anadolu Kavağı–Üsküdar ferry from Kanlıca, down the Asian shore past Anadolu Hisarı, Çengelköy and Beylerbeyi, arriving in Üsküdar at 17:40.
9. Evening. A short ferry from Üsküdar to Eminönü or Beşiktaş, or dinner on the Asian side.

On a Sunday or public holiday, skip the ring ferry and use the Bebek–Emirgan line instead: the 14:55 from Bebek reaches Kanlıca at 15:15, in time for the same 16:50 boat to Üsküdar. For the northern end, take the long Bosphorus tour to Anadolu Kavağı, climb to Yoros Castle and eat fish before the 15:00 sailing back, or cross to Sarıyer for börek on the small Anadolu Kavağı–Rumeli Kavağı–Sarıyer ferry.

By car: both shores in one day

A car is the easiest way to see both shores, the northern villages and a palace in a single day. By the shore road, Ortaköy to Sarıyer is about 20 km and Üsküdar to Anadolu Kavağı about 26 km. Traffic is the variable: TomTom's 2025 index measured an average of almost 23 minutes per 10 km in Istanbul, and on its worst day congestion peaked at 6 pm. Start early, cross the strait before the evening peak, and let a driver deal with stopping and parking.

A practical car day runs up the European shore to Ortaköy, Bebek, Rumeli Hisarı and Emirgan, lunch in Sarıyer, then over the Fatih Sultan Mehmet Bridge to Kanlıca, Anadolu Hisarı and Beylerbeyi. See our private car with driver page, and for city-only private tours, our sister site lists private Istanbul tours.

Food stops along the way

• Ortaköy: kumpir from the shops behind the square, and waffles.
• Arnavutköy: seafood restaurants on the waterfront.
• Bebek: marzipan and almond cookies from the shop founded in 1904.
• Emirgan: tea in the waterfront tea gardens, or a meal in the park's White Pavilion, a café by day and a restaurant in the evening.
• Sarıyer: fish from the market restaurants, and Sarıyer börek, sold by the kilo.
• Kanlıca: yoghurt sprinkled with sugar.
• Anadolu Kavağı: a fish lunch before the long-tour boat leaves.

More in our Istanbul street food guide.

Tours that cover this

• Full-day Bosphorus cruise and two-continents tour: from $88 per person.
• Istanbul private driver tour: Mercedes Vito for 8 hours, 1 to 6 guests: from $299 per group, enough for both shores.
• Bosphorus lunch cruise with hotel pick-up and drop-off: from $75 per person, 3 hours.
• Private Bosphorus yacht cruise: 2 hours with guide: from $600 per group, a private look at the shores from the water.

All our boat options are on the Bosphorus tours page, and evening options on our sunset Bosphorus yacht cruise page.

Frequently Asked Questions