Unusual Things to Do in Istanbul: Iron Church, Old Walls, 1875 Tünel

The most unusual things to do in Istanbul are often the ones next to the famous sights: riding a funicular that opened in 1875, visiting a church built from prefabricated cast iron, walking the 5th-century land walls, and taking the ferry to the last village on the Bosphorus. Most of them take an hour or two and cost little. If you want a guide for the less-visited corners, our Yedikule Fortress, Galata and Balat half-day tour starts from $45 per person.

This list is for travellers who have already seen Hagia Sophia and the Grand Bazaar, or who want to add something different to a first trip. We left out anything that needs a special permit or a long detour, and we kept to places our guides take guests to.

Quick list: where each one is

Ride the second-oldest underground railway in the world

The Tünel is a short funicular that climbs from Karaköy, near the Galata Bridge, up to the southern end of Istiklal Avenue. It opened on 17 January 1875, which makes it the second-oldest underground urban railway in the world after London's. The line is only about 570 metres long, and the ride takes under two minutes.

It is a practical shortcut as well as a curiosity: it saves you the steep climb from the waterfront to Beyoğlu. Pay with an Istanbulkart. At the top, you are a few minutes' walk from the Galata Mevlevi Lodge and the shops of Istiklal. Combine it with Galata Tower and the streets below it; our guide to things to do in Galata and Karaköy covers the area.

Balat and Fener: the iron church and the Patriarchate

On the shore of the Golden Horn stands the Bulgarian Church of St Stephen, known as the Iron Church. It was built in the late 19th century from prefabricated cast-iron sections made in Vienna and shipped to Istanbul by river and sea. After a restoration paid for by Turkey and Bulgaria, it reopened in January 2018. It is an active church, so dress modestly and keep quiet during services.

A short walk away are the Fener Greek Orthodox Patriarchate, the red-brick school on the hill above it, and the steep streets of coloured houses in Balat. Go on a weekday morning; at weekends, the streets fill with photo shoots. Our page on things to do in Balat has a walking route, and Balat and Fener explains the history.

Walk the Theodosian Walls to Yedikule

Constantinople's land walls run from the Golden Horn to the Sea of Marmara and were built in the 5th century under Theodosius II. Large sections still stand, with towers, gates and the remains of the moat. Few visitors come here, which is the point.

At the southern end is Yedikule, the Fortress of the Seven Towers, built around the Golden Gate of the Byzantine emperors. Later it served as an Ottoman treasury and prison. It is a good place to understand how the city was defended, and the views from the walls take in the Sea of Marmara.

The walls are long and some stretches are lonely, so walk them in daylight and in company. The easier way is with a guide and a car, stopping at the best sections. Our half-day tour of Yedikule, Galata and Balat does this. The Chora Church, with its late Byzantine mosaics, is close to the walls at Edirnekapı and is a natural stop on the way.

Museums with a story

• Museum of Innocence, Çukurcuma. Orhan Pamuk built this museum alongside his novel of the same name: a house of glass cases filled with the objects of a love story. Copies of the novel contain a printed ticket that gets you in once. Closed on Mondays.
• Galata Mevlevi Lodge Museum, Tünel. A former dervish lodge with a wooden ceremonial hall and a graveyard. It is part of the ministry's museum list, at €7 for foreign visitors.
• Rahmi M. Koç Museum, Hasköy. Steam engines, vintage cars, a submarine and a full-size aircraft in old industrial buildings on the Golden Horn. Closed on Mondays.
• Rumeli Fortress, Bosphorus. Built in 1452 before the conquest of the city, and one of the cheapest entries on the ministry list at €6. The walk along the battlements gives a different view of the Bosphorus bridge.

Beyond the centre: Eyüp, Kuzguncuk and Anadolu Kavağı

Eyüp and Pierre Loti hill. Eyüp Sultan Mosque is one of the holiest sites in Istanbul, and the hillside cemetery behind it rises to a café named after the French writer Pierre Loti. A cable car runs up from the shore, or you can walk through the cemetery. Tea at the top with the Golden Horn below is a classic local afternoon. See Pierre Loti Hill and Eyüp Sultan Mosque.

Kuzguncuk. A small neighbourhood on the Asian shore near Üsküdar, with wooden houses, a mosque, churches and a synagogue within a few streets of each other. It has cafés, a community garden and very few tour groups. Pair it with the waterfront at Üsküdar or with Kadıköy and Moda.

Anadolu Kavağı. The last village on the Asian side of the Bosphorus before the Black Sea, at the end of the long Bosphorus ferry route from Eminönü. Above the village are the ruins of Yoros Castle, with a view of the strait opening to the sea. Fish restaurants line the harbour. Our self-guided Bosphorus ferry guide explains how to do the trip on your own.

Unusual experiences you can book

Some of the most different ways to see Istanbul are organised experiences rather than places.

• A film set day. Fans of the Turkish historical series Diriliş: Ertuğrul and Kuruluş: Osman can visit the sets on the edge of the city. See the Diriliş Ertuğrul and Kuruluş Osman film set tour.
• A flying dress photoshoot. A long, flowing dress, a rooftop with a view of the old city and a professional photographer. Our flying dress rooftop photoshoot is a 3-hour session with 250 photos and a short reel.
• A helicopter flight. Thirty minutes over the Bosphorus and both continents. See our private helicopter tour over the Bosphorus.
• A whirling dervish ceremony. Not unusual in Istanbul, but often missed by short-stay visitors. One quiet hour of music and turning.

A one-day route off the usual track

This route links several of the places above without much backtracking:

On foot and by public transport, this is a long day. With a private car and driver it becomes comfortable, because the distances between the walls, the Golden Horn and Beyoğlu are short by road. If you want a local guide only for Istanbul, our sister site Get Istanbul Tours also runs private city days. For more ideas across the whole city, see our list of things to do in Istanbul.

Tours that cover this

• Yedikule Fortress, Galata and Balat Half-Day Tour: from $45 per person. The walls, Galata and Balat in one morning.
• Istanbul Churches Tour: Full-Day Private Guide and Van: from $180 per person, 7 hours, with a private guide and van to the city's working churches.
• Diriliş Ertuğrul and Kuruluş Osman Film Set Day Tour: from $88 per person.
• Istanbul Flying Dress Photoshoot: Rooftop Session: from $190 per person, 3 hours.

For Christian sites in more depth, see our Christian heritage tour of Istanbul page.

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