Things to Do in Balat and Fener: Golden Horn Streets and Churches

The main things to do in Balat and Fener are visiting the Ecumenical Patriarchate and the iron Bulgarian Church of St Stephen, climbing the steep streets of colourful wooden houses, browsing the antique shops and cafés of Balat, and walking uphill to the Byzantine mosaics of the Chora (Kariye) Mosque. Allow half a day for the two neighbourhoods, or a full day if you add Chora and the view from Pierre Loti Hill. These are two old quarters on the southern shore of the Golden Horn, once home to Greek, Jewish and Armenian communities, and most of the interest is in the streets themselves. For a guide who knows the churches and the back lanes, our Yedikule, Galata and Balat half-day tour includes the area.

Balat and Fener at a glance

Fener (the old Greek Phanar) and Balat (the old Jewish quarter) run into each other along the shore road, so you can walk both without noticing the border. The order below starts at the Fener ferry pier and works north and uphill.

Getting to Balat and Fener

Balat and Fener are not on the tram line, which is why they still feel like neighbourhoods rather than tourist zones. There are three easy ways in:

• The Golden Horn ferry. The Haliç ferry line calls at Fener and Balat on its way up the Golden Horn, and it is the most pleasant way to arrive. Pay with an Istanbulkart.
• Bus or taxi along the shore road. City buses run along the Golden Horn from Eminönü. A taxi from Sultanahmet is a short ride outside rush hour.
• On foot from the Fatih Mosque. If you are already at the Fatih Mosque, the walk downhill to Fener takes about 20 minutes through residential streets.

The Ecumenical Patriarchate and the Bulgarian iron church

Start with the Fener Greek Orthodox Patriarchate, the seat of the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople and the spiritual centre of the Orthodox Christian world. It has been based here, at the Church of St George, since 1601. The church is small, with a gilded wooden iconostasis, relics and a patriarchal throne. Entry is free, services are held regularly, and visitors should dress as for any church and stay quiet.

Notice the main middle gate of the compound, which is kept closed. It has stayed shut since 1821, when Patriarch Gregory V was hanged there during the Greek War of Independence; visitors use the side entrance.

A five-minute walk north along the shore road brings you to the Bulgarian Church of St Stephen, often called the iron church. Its structure was made of prefabricated cast-iron sections in Vienna, shipped to Istanbul and assembled on site, and the church was consecrated in 1898. After a long restoration it reopened in 2018 and is free to enter. Inside, the iron walls are painted to look like marble, and the iconostasis and chandeliers are worth a slow look.

The hill: Phanar Greek College and St Mary of the Mongols

From the Patriarchate, climb the stepped lanes behind the shore. The huge red-brick building on the hilltop is the Phanar Greek Orthodox College, a 19th-century school building known locally as the Red Castle. It is still a school, so you see it from the outside, but the climb gives you a view over the Golden Horn.

Just below it is the Church of St Mary of the Mongols (Panagia Mouchliotissa), founded in the 13th century by a Byzantine princess who had been married to a Mongol ruler. It is the only Byzantine church in Istanbul that has stayed in Orthodox Christian use without ever becoming a mosque. Opening is irregular and depends on the caretaker, so treat it as a bonus if you find the door open.

The colourful streets of Fener and Balat

This is what most visitors come for: rows of narrow two- and three-storey houses with bay windows, painted orange, yellow, blue and green, on streets that climb sharply from the shore. The most photographed spots are the stepped Merdivenli Yokuş and the corners of Kiremit Street, where the houses lean over the lanes and ivy covers the facades.

A few points of courtesy go a long way here. These are ordinary homes, so do not climb on steps or doorways for photos, keep voices down early in the morning, and ask before photographing residents. Weekday mornings are the quietest time; at weekends the streets fill with photographers and wedding shoots.

Balat's cafés, antique shops and the Ahrida Synagogue

Further north, the flatter streets of Balat around Vodina Street and Leblebiciler Street are lined with small cafés, bakeries, second-hand bookshops and antique and vintage shops selling everything from old radios to Ottoman-era tiles. It is a good place for a long Turkish breakfast or a slow coffee before heading uphill.

Balat was for centuries the main Jewish quarter of Istanbul. The Ahrida Synagogue, founded in the 15th century, is one of the oldest in the city and still in use, with a boat-shaped wooden reader's platform. Visits cannot be made on the spot; they must be arranged in advance through the Chief Rabbinate of Türkiye with passport details.

Chora, Eyüp and Pierre Loti: extending the day

With a full day, add one or two of these:

• The Chora (Kariye) Mosque. A 20-25 minute walk uphill from Balat, near the old land walls. Its 14th-century mosaics and frescoes, including the famous Anastasis fresco in the side chapel, are among the finest Byzantine art anywhere. Since August 2024 foreign visitors pay €20. Tourist entry runs 09:00-18:00 and stops 15 minutes before each prayer; the Museum Pass is not accepted.
• Eyüp and Pierre Loti Hill. Continue up the Golden Horn by ferry or taxi to Eyüp, where the Eyüp Sultan Mosque is one of the holiest sites in Istanbul. A short cable car, paid with an Istanbulkart, climbs to the Pierre Loti café at the top, with a long view down the Golden Horn.
• The Süleymaniye Mosque on the way back. Built by the architect Sinan in the 1550s, it stands on the hill above Eminönü and is the best place to end the day, with a free terrace view over the Golden Horn.

Our Balat and Fener page has more on the history of the two quarters, and the Christian heritage tour of Istanbul covers the city's churches in more depth.

Tours that cover this

• Yedikule Fortress, Galata and Balat Half-Day Tour, from $45 per person.
• Istanbul Full-Day Tour with Bosphorus Cruise: Balat, Galata and Lunch, from $57 per person.
• Istanbul Churches Tour: Full-Day Private Guide and Van, from $180 per person. Istanbul's active churches with a licensed guide and a private vehicle.

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