Istanbul
owes its place as Turkey’s most colorful and lively city to many factors. While
its dense and diverse population, countless cultural places, and historical
sites largely contribute to this title, the active and large shopping
streets in Istanbul also help this city become so much more than just a
couple of museums and palaces.
Istiklal
Avenue
Let’s
start with the most popular and obvious one, the Istiklal Avenue. This street
is easily the one of the most crowded places in Istanbul. It has so many brands
of stores, cafés and restaurants that experiencing everything this street has
can easily take a month.
If
you are looking to shop for books and enjoy great coffee and desserts, Turkish -
German Bookstore & Café is a great place, near the Sishane metro station.
Further up the street, you can visit Istiklal Pandora if you are into various
jewelries like necklaces, rings and customizable charm bracelets. A highlight
of the Istiklal Street Istanbul is the Madame Tussauds Istanbul, which is a
must-visit wax museum that has +60 wax models of various important local and
international people. To buy some clothes, you have many options: H&M, U.S.
Polo, Zara, L.C. Waikiki and more. Another must-see of the Istiklal Avenue is
the Pera Museum, which is one of the prominent contemporary art museums in
Turkey.
You
can easily start your Istiklal street tour by getting off at either the Sishane
or the Taksim stop of the M2 Yenikapi – Haciosman metro line.
Abdi
Ipekci Street
Located
in the Nisantasi neighborhood of the Sisli district, Abdi Ipekci Street in
Istanbul is one of the leading Istanbul’s shopping streets when it comes
to luxurious brands. When you combine this with the street’s historical and
elegant buildings, you get one of the most elite and stylish streets in the
city.
One
of the restaurants of Nusr-Et, a Turkish internet sensation that’s known for
its “salt-bae” persona in the social media, is in the Abdi Ipekci Street if you
want to eat delicious, meat-based food. Many luxurious local and international
clothing brands also have stores in the street, such as Louis Vuitton, Beymen,
Tod’s, Christian Louboutin, Berluti, Vakko, Prada, Punto Leather & Fur,
Rolex, Machka and Salvatore Ferragamo. On top of Nusr-Et, there are many more
delicious and luxurious restaurants here as well, like Spago, St. Regis
Brasserie, Kirinti, Café Wien, Ranchero Restaurante Mexicano, Develi and Nisantasi
Brasserie. For cozy bars with great cocktails, you can visit Cocktails by
Atiye, Biber Bar, Touchdown or Society Lounge Bar & Night Club.
To
go to the Abdi Ipekci Street, you can either use the M2 Yenikapi – Haciosman
metro line to go to the Osmanbey stop and walk for 10 minutes or get on 26,
26A, 26B, 30A or 43 numbered IETT buses and get off at the Macka Parki stop.
Serdar-i
Ekrem Street
As
another famous and elegant shopping street you can find in Beyoglu, Serdar-i
Ekrem Street is one of the best places to shop in Istanbul. It is
located very close to the Galata Tower, so you can visit it before or after
your visit to the tower. This cobblestone street has numerous cool, small
boutique shops to explore rather than big brands.
If
you need a place to stay, you can choose among the many cozy 3 and 4-star
hotels in the Serdar-i Ekrem Street, like Georges Hotel Galata Beytul
Galata and Meroddi Galata Mansion. The street is famous for its cozy and
friendly cafes such as Cha'ya Galata, Cafe Pisi Pisi and Mavra Cafe Design
Workshop. For your clothing and cosmetics shopping, there are Civan, MUGO
Galata, Emino Tillo and MY2EGO. One of the most popular best hairdressers and
cosmetics shops of Istanbul, Galata No5 Kuafor/Hairdresser, is also in the Serdar-i
Ekrem Street. This street also houses a couple of cool art galleries like Cep
Gallery and Galeribu. Other highlights of the street are The Market, which is
one of the coolest grocery stores in the city and the Lunapark, a great
souvenir shop that you must visit with many services like graphic design,
collection consultancy and styling. We also highly recommend that you give
Galata Mevlevihanesi Museum a visit, which is one of the Sufi Shrines of Istanbulwith a whirling derwishes show every Sunday.
To
get there, go to the Sishane metro stop, walk down the Sah Kulu Bostan Street
and turn left at the end.
Cukurcuma
Street
Though
one of the smaller and less known shopping streets of Istanbul,
Cukurcuma Street is still a gem waiting to be discovered by the antique-hunters.
The whole street is covered with small neoclassical buildings, which fits
perfectly to its many vintage boutique shops.
This
street houses the famous Cukurcuma Hammam, which one of the best Turkish baths
in Istanbul. If you want to get amazing gifts to your friends and family or
keep some souvenirs from Istanbul to yourself, 3rd Culture is a great gift
shop. Museum of Innocence, which is named and created based on the novel of
famous Turkish author Orhan Pamuk, is also located in this street. For the
art-lovers, 2 amazing art galleries stand side by side in this street, C.A.M.
Galeri and PG Art Gallery, on top of REM Art Space and Klip Kuns. If you get
tired and hungry during your walk in the Cukurcuma Street, you can
visit Cuma or Faik Pasa Café for amazing food and cozy tables. If you need a
place to stay, both Faik Pasha Suites Design Hotel and Hammamhane are fantastic
choices with stylish, spacious and cozy rooms and great services. Other
highlights of the street are The North Fox, a handcrafted leather goods store
with lovely staff, and the Karadeniz Antik, an antique shop with various
interesting items.
Cukurcuma
Street is close to both Taksim Square and Istiklal Street. Your first option is
to use the Kabatas – Bagcilar tramway line and get off at the Tophane stop.
Then, follow the Bogazkesen Street until its end and turn right after you see
Leila Boutique. From the Istiklal Avenue, you can use the T2 Taksim – Tunel
tramway and get off at the Galatasaray stop. Walk down the Yeni Carsi Street
and turn left just after you enter the Bogazkesen Street.
Bagdat
Street
We
only talked about the shopping streets in the European side of Istanbul, but
that doesn’t mean that there isn’t any in the Asian side. Bagdat Street is one
of the longest streets in the city (9 km) and is the main shopping place in the
Asian side. It got its name after Sultan Murad IV used this street while
leaving Istanbul for the Battle of Baghdad.
Because
of this street is 9 kilometers long, it is impossible to talk about the stores
individually. You can easily spend an entire day here. If you are looking for
some place to eat, Brasserie Noir, BigChef’s, Godiva Belgium and Gunaydin
Steakhouse Bostanci are great choices. For clothes shopping, you have unlimited
options. From luxurious Turkish brands like Beymen, Vakko and Brandroom to Longchamp,
Michael Kors and Tommy Hilfiger, COS and Zara, you won’t run out of options
soon. To sit down and enjoy some coffee in a cozy place, you can pay a visit to
one of the many cafés in the Bagdat Street, a couple of which are: Nespresso
Boutique, Starbucks, Kirpi Café and Zamane Café.
Nispetiye
Street
Nispetiye
Street is located in the Etiler neighborhood of the Besiktas district is one of
the most luxurious and busy shopping streets of the city. One of the reasons
for this is the famous Akmerkez Shopping Mall, which houses many local and
international stores, restaurants and cafés. It is also known for its great
night life and beautiful parks. The Turkish social media star CznBurak’s
restaurant is in this street, which is a must-go if you are on a Turkish food
tour. Nusr-Et also has a restaurant here. There are many more luxurious cafés
and restaurants in the street, like PS Lounge, Beyaz Firin, Adana
Yuzevler Kebapcisi and Tacofit. You can also find many clothing stores such as Beymen,
Vakko and Mavi Jeans.
Transfer
to M6 Levent – Bogazici Universitesi metro line at the Levent stop of the M2 Yenikapi
– Haciosman metro line and get off at either the Etiler or the Nispetiye stop
to go to the Nispetiye Street.
Nuruosmaniye
Street
If
you are particularly interested in jewelry or oriental carpets, then come to
the Nuruosmaniye Street in the Fatih district. There are many great jewelry
stores in this street, like Elijah Jewels, Altinbas, Lizay Pirlanta, KOÇAK and
Gulaylar. Orient Handmade Carpets sells great traditional carpets if you are
interested. Hakki Zade 1864 is a historical pastry with fantastic Turkish
desserts. Armaggan is a unique place that sells various things, ranging from jewelry
and clothing to leather items and textiles. It also has an art gallery.
