Istanbul 7-Day Itinerary: A Week with Princes' Islands and Bursa

A week in Istanbul gives you five days in the city and two day trips, and the best way to use it is to alternate: three city days, a day on the Princes' Islands, a city day, a day in Bursa and Uludağ, and a slow final day in Balat and Kadıköy. Alternating city days with days out keeps the pace easy. You are never on your feet in crowds more than three days in a row, and the day trips fall midweek, when the ferries and the mountain are quieter. The plan below gives each day its area, the closing days to watch and the swaps that work if the weather or your interests point elsewhere. For a full week with a hotel, a private guide and the islands already included, see our 8-day Istanbul tour package.

A week in Istanbul at a glance

Days 1 to 3: the core of the city

The first three days cover what most visitors come for. Split over three days instead of two, each one ends with energy left for the evening.

Day 1: Sultanahmet. Be at Hagia Sophia at opening (€25 for foreign visitors, upper-gallery route). Cross to the Blue Mosque, free between prayers, and walk the Hippodrome. After lunch, the Basilica Cistern. In the evening, a rooftop dinner looking at the domes.

Day 2: Topkapı and the museums. The morning goes to Topkapı Palace: one 2,750 TL ticket for the palace, the Harem and Hagia Irene. In the afternoon, the Istanbul Archaeology Museums (€15) and a walk through Gülhane Park. In the evening, a whirling dervish Sema ceremony.

Day 3: Bazaars and the Bosphorus. Morning in the Grand Bazaar, then up to the Süleymaniye Mosque and down to the Spice Bazaar. After a fish sandwich at Eminönü, spend the afternoon on the Bosphorus, by public ferry, shared cruise or private yacht.

Day 4: the Princes' Islands

After three days of sightseeing, day four is a day by the sea. The public ferry from Kabataş to Büyükada, the largest of the Princes' Islands, takes about 90 minutes and calls at the smaller islands on the way. The islands are car-free; horse carriages were taken off the roads in 2020, and small electric buses now run on Büyükada.

How to spend the day:

• Walk the streets of 19th-century wooden mansions above the harbour.
• Rent a bicycle, or walk up to the Aya Yorgi monastery on one of the island's two hills for the view over the Sea of Marmara.
• Have a long fish lunch at the harbour before the boat back.

Go on a weekday if you can; summer weekends bring large crowds. In winter the island is much quieter, and the ferry runs all year.

Day 5: Dolmabahçe, Ortaköy and Galata

Back in the city, day five covers the 19th-century and modern sides of Istanbul.

Start at Dolmabahçe Palace (2,000 TL, closed on Mondays). Allow two hours for the palace's set route, its crystal staircase and the room where Atatürk died in 1938. Then take a taxi or bus along the shore to Ortaköy for a kumpir by the mosque under the first bridge.

In the late afternoon, climb the Galata Tower (€30) for the view over the Golden Horn, then walk up to Istiklal Avenue for the passages, the old tram and dinner in the side streets of Beyoğlu.

Day 6: Bursa and Uludağ

The second day trip goes south across the Sea of Marmara to Bursa, the first capital of the Ottoman state. The road trip is about 2 to 2.5 hours each way, so this is an early start.

In the city, the Green Mosque and Green Tomb show the tile work of the early Ottoman period, and the Grand Mosque with its many domes stands next to the old silk market. Bursa's early Ottoman monuments, together with the nearby village of Cumalıkızık, are on the UNESCO World Heritage list. Lunch is İskender kebab, which comes from Bursa.

In the afternoon, the 8.8-kilometre gondola climbs from the edge of the city through pine forest towards the hotel area of Uludağ. In winter there is snow at the top; in summer it is a cool escape from the heat.

Day 7: Chora, Balat and the Asian side

The last day is for wandering. Start at the Chora mosaics (€20 for foreign visitors) inside the Kariye Mosque, then walk downhill through Balat and Fener to the Golden Horn. In the afternoon, take the ferry from Eminönü to Kadıköy, about 20 minutes, and end the week with sunset on the Moda shore.

If you fly out on day seven, keep only the morning and allow about three hours from the Old City to Istanbul Airport.

Swaps for the day trips

Not everyone wants the islands and Bursa. These alternatives replace day 4 or day 6, and Cappadocia can replace days 6 and 7 together.

A few tips for pacing the week:

• Fix the closures first. Topkapı on Tuesday, Dolmabahçe on Monday, the Grand Bazaar on Sunday. Move days 2, 3 and 5 around them.
• Put day trips on weekdays. Ferries and the gondola are calmer from Monday to Friday.
• Keep one hotel. Sultanahmet or Karaköy work for the whole week; both are on the T1 tram, and day tours pick up from central hotels.
• Skip the Museum Pass unless you count first. It costs €105 for five days but does not cover Hagia Sophia, the Basilica Cistern or Dolmabahçe.

Tours that cover this

• Istanbul Tour Package 8 Days: Private Old City, Bosphorus and Islands, from $1,499 per person. A full week arranged around the same areas.
• Princes' Islands Day Tour from Istanbul: Ferry, Büyükada and Lunch, from $90 per person. Day four.
• Bursa and Uludağ Tour from Istanbul: Ferry, Cable Car and Lunch, from $90 per person. Day six.
• Private Istanbul Tour with a Licensed Guide: 1, 2 or 3 Days, from $199 per group. Days one to three with your own guide.

For more ideas, see our Istanbul day trips page and, if you want to see more of the country, our 7-day Turkey itinerary.

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