A covered market with a width of 61 streets of Istanbul, which contains everything you need with thousands of shops. Yes, this is Istanbul Grand Bazaar, a market that is also known as Istanbul Grand Bazaar and Kapali Çarşı Bazaar, and its sellers are known for their sales skills.
This market is both a place for shopping and one of the must-see places in Istanbul. If you travel to Istanbul and don’t visit it, you have missed the opportunity to see a historical, attractive market, and most importantly, one of the largest covered markets in the world. Therefore, when you travel to Istanbul, be sure to visit Istanbul Grand Bazaar in your plan.
If you are not familiar with this bazaar or your level of familiarity is very low, stay with us and introduce Istanbul’s grand bazaar. In this article, we will tell you about this beautiful and spectacular market.
Istanbul Grand Bazaar
Getting to know Istanbul Grand Bazaar
Istanbul Grand Bazaar is one of the largest commercial centers in Istanbul. This market has an area of 50 thousand square meters and as mentioned in the introduction, it surrounds 61 streets of Istanbul. Kapali Charshi has more than 3000 shops in its heart, and its shops include clothes, bags and shoes, jewelry, handicrafts, restaurants and cafes, etc.
This market has a major share of buyers and visitors among the commercial centers of Istanbul and has between 90 and 100 million visitors annually. More precisely, this market hosts 250 to 400,000 visitors daily, including tourists and local residents, who come to this market to buy necessities or Farang souvenirs.
It is interesting to know that in 2014, this beautiful market became the most visited tourist attraction in the world and is world famous.
A look at the history of Istanbul Grand Bazaar
Istanbul Grand Bazaar dates back to the 15th century and the years 1455-1456. In those years, the bazaar was built by the order of Sultan Mehmet II and after the conquest of Istanbul by the Ottoman Empire. In the early years of building the bazaar, textiles and jewelry were the only goods that were sold in this bazaar until a few years later, Sultan Mehmet II ordered the construction of another bazaar, which later became known as Sandel Bastan.
With the construction of this bazaar, in addition to jewelry and textiles, luxury goods also made room among other goods and were sold in the new part of the bazaar. Istanbul Grand Bazaar was not very prosperous at the beginning of its activity and things were not going well. Until the area around the market was gradually filled with different shops and in this way the market and its economic situation expanded.
Little by little, Istanbul’s grand bazaar prospered until it reached its peak in the 17th century. At that time, the expansion of the Ottoman Empire had reached the size of 3 continents, and the control of the communication routes between Asia and Europe by the Ottoman Empire also caused many caravanserais to be built around the market. In the end, the result of these events led to the transformation of this market into the commercial hub of the Mediterranean.
Since then, this commercial center has been around 6 centuries since its construction and its popularity and prosperity are still standing and it is considered one of the most famous shopping centers in Istanbul. During this trip, you can stay in the best hotels in Istanbul at the best price.
Access to Istanbul Grand Bazaar
The Grand Bazaar of Istanbul is located in the Fatih district of Istanbul, next to the wall of the historic Citadel of Istanbul. To be more precise, the market is located in Kapali Çarşı neighborhood, which is also known as Istanbul’s Grand Bazaar neighborhood, between Bayezid Mosque and Norosmaniye Mosque.
To access this market, since wherever you are in Istanbul, there is a different route in front of you, so it is not possible to introduce a fixed route. However, we will introduce you to access to Istanbul Grand Bazaar by tram from Taksim Square and metro from Atatürk Boulevard and a practical site for bus routing.
Access to Istanbul Grand Bazaar by tram from Taksim Square
Take the F1 funicular line to Cabatash station. Then take T1 tram line from Katabash and get off at Bayazid station. Kapali Charshi Big Bazaar is in front of you.
Access to Istanbul Grand Bazaar by subway from Ataturk Blvd
Enter Ankara Ski Boulevard and take line 122H to Lunet metro station. From there, take the metro line M2 and get off at Wenzkeiler station. There is no metro line from Wenzkiler station and you have to walk part of the way to reach the market.
A practical site for routing to go to Istanbul Grand Bazaar by bus
If none of the above routes are useful for you, visit https://iett.istanbul/ and search for the best way to access the market by bus from there.
Istanbul Grand Bazaar working hours
Istanbul Grand Bazaar starts its activities at 9 in the morning and ends at 7 in the evening every day except Sundays and Turkish national and public holidays. Since the market is completely open, you can go there and visit it between the mentioned hours. For this purpose, we suggest you plan so that you have at least 3 to 4 hours to explore the market.
Istanbul Bazaar – tourismassist
The best time to visit Istanbul Grand Bazaar
If you don’t care about the crowd and the price, or you just want to visit the Kapali Charshi market as a historical monument, Thursday and Friday are the best times to go to the market, especially near night.
Because at this time the market is crowded and the commotion of the crowd will give you a good feeling.
Otherwise, normal days of the week, except Sundays when the market is closed, are the best time to go to Istanbul Grand Bazaar.
For this purpose, you should cross out Thursday and Friday because, as we said, the market is crowded on these two days, and most importantly, the prices may go up.
Briefly about the architecture of Istanbul bazaar
Istanbul Grand Bazaar has its own special and unique architecture and dates back to the 15th century right after the conquest of Constantinople by the Ottomans.
This market is completely covered and is one of the 58 covered markets in the world. The beauty of the bazaar is its dome-shaped ceilings and large windows placed in the ceiling; So that the entire bazaar is surrounded by painted dome ceilings with a height of about 6 meters and there are windows inside them to provide light.
This unique architecture of the market has made walking in this market enjoyable and you will experience a feeling similar to walking in the traditional and famous markets of Iran.
In addition, there are traditional drinking fountains in the passageways of the market, which add to the attractiveness of the market architecture in order to quench your thirst, and you can visit them and watch them closely.
Sections of Kapali Çarşı market in Istanbul
There is everything you want in Istanbul’s Kapali Çarşı market. In other words, you can get everything from chicken milk to human life in this market.
So it doesn’t matter if you are going to buy shoes and bags or to buy spices, almost everything you need for your daily life can be found in this big market.
The beauty of the Istanbul Grand Bazaar is that it is divided into sections or in more colloquial terms, and you can find any category of goods in its corresponding section. This feature of the market has not only made it easier to find the item you want, but it has also given you the opportunity to compare the price and type of goods and has created a sense of competition between sellers.
Bags and shoes
The bags and shoes section of Istanbul Grand Bazaar contains all kinds of modern and leather bags and shoes. In this section, in addition to providing modern design bags and shoes, you can also buy traditional shoes from the Ottoman and Seljuk eras, as well as hand-embroidered leather shoes or Yemeni shoes that can only be found in this market.
Leather and skin row in Istanbul’s Kapali Çarşı market
Istanbul is one of the main leather product production centers in the world. If you love leather products, be sure to visit this part of the market.
spices Bazaar
The shops in the spice row of the Istanbul Grand Bazaar have the feel of the attari shops in Iran. Of course, it is not without reason, and in fact, these shops are like our own perfumeries in Iran.
When you enter this way, a familiar image is placed in front of you and it is as if you have returned to the traditional markets of Iran with a time machine and you are shopping or passing by an attari.
The shops in this area sell all kinds of spices, herbs, teas, herbal syrups, etc. If you deal with a lot of spices and herbs, be sure to visit the spice section of Istanbul Grand Bazaar.
Order of spices
antiques Bazaar
The antique section of Kapali Charshi Bazaar is filled with all kinds of old and priceless items that you can visit and buy. Even if you don’t intend to buy, you can be sure that looking at old objects in this way will surprise you and you will enjoy watching them.
Keep 2 points in mind about the antiques section of Istanbul Grand Bazaar:
- First: if you intend to buy antiques, you must deal with antiques or take a knowledgeable person with you. Because otherwise, your hat may fall off.
- Second: keep in mind that it is forbidden to export some old and expensive items from Turkey, so you cannot bring all items in this regard to Iran with you. As a result, it is necessary to be informed before buying that the object or objects you want are not prohibited from leaving and then buy it.
Carpets and rugs
Türkiye, like Iran, has a long history in the production and weaving of carpets; So that the history of carpet weaving in Türkiye goes back to 7 thousand years ago. In this regard, there are all kinds of carpets and rugs in the market that you can visit and buy whatever you want.
Handicrafts
The handicraft row is filled with all kinds of Turkish handicrafts, which mostly include rugs, gilding, miniatures, calligraphy and wood works. If you love to buy handicrafts, you can go to this part of Istanbul Grand Bazaar and learn about Istanbul handicrafts.
The market of gold shops
You should look for gold shops in Kapali Charshi market in the order of money changers.
This issue goes back to the past of this part of the market; In the past, the businesses in this part of the market were all money changers, then they gradually changed jobs and became gold sellers instead of money changers.
But the name of Saraf remained on them, that’s why there is no row with the name of the gold merchant row in this market, and the row of gold sellers is named after the row of money changers.
Facilities inside Kapali Square, Istanbul
The Grand Bazaar of Istanbul has various facilities in its heart that you can take help from to meet your needs and relax. Among these facilities, we can mention the tourist information center, pharmacy, tavern, post office, branches of most Turkish banks, restaurants and cafes.
Istanbul Grand Bazaar restaurants
There are many restaurants around Borzag Istanbul where you can eat and satisfy your hunger. 4 of the best restaurants in this market are as follows:
Havozlo restaurant
Havodlo restaurant has been operating for more than half a century and is one of the traditional restaurants around the Kapali Charshi market. This restaurant has a traditional texture and a pleasant atmosphere and has enough tables and chairs to sit and eat.
Havodlo is one of the restaurants where you can go for lunch or a cup of tea or coffee. To have lunch at this restaurant, you must be there between 12:00 and 15:00, but you also have time to have tea or coffee until 8:00 at night.
Havozlo restaurant
Gul Ebro Canteen restaurant
Gul Ebro Canteen Restaurant is a small and compact restaurant that is famous for its donerkebabs. You can buy and enjoy the best doner kebabs from this restaurant. This restaurant does not have much seating space and most of its orders are take-out. If you go to this restaurant for a meal, be sure to try its delicious buttermilk.
Gul Ebro Canteen restaurant
Aslan restaurant
Aslan restaurant is located outside of Istanbul Grand Bazaar. This restaurant serves a variety of Turkish and Ottoman dishes to its customers and also has seafood in its menu. Aslan is one of the restaurants where you can order a pot of freshly brewed tea and enjoy it after eating.
Aslan restaurant can be a good choice for lunch. This restaurant starts working every day from 11 am and its activity continues until 9 pm.
Aslan restaurant
Burch restaurant
Burch Restaurant is a restaurant for lovers of Turkish kebabs. In this restaurant, you can experience the pure taste of Ghazi Aintab and Ali Nazik kebabs. Like Gul Ebro Canteen, Burch also doesn’t have a lot of space to sit, and if you plan to eat in the restaurant environment, you probably have to wait a little while until the dining table is empty.
One of the best dishes that you can eat in this restaurant is Ali Nazik Kebab, because this restaurant has a special skill in cooking this dish and it is one of its famous dishes. If you don’t know about Ali Nazik kebab, we should say that this kebab is served with pieces of flavored meat with eggplant puree and served with salad, chopped walnuts and pomegranate sauce.
Burch restaurant
Recent Comments