Walking in Istanbul Bazaar Quarter

[sally]

Next week (volcano permitting) I am hoping to use 'Istanbul's Bazaar Quarter - backstreet walking tours' by Anne Marie Mershon and Edda Renker Weissenbacher, published in 2009 and available from Amazon. They describe four walks, with lots of well researched information and lovely photos.

[ckdexter]

I've got a copy of this one too, and really like it. Definitely recommend it to others.

[Bill_Miyorum]

The "Lonely Planet" guide to Istanbul contains a walking tour of the Bazaar District. I had no trouble following the route instructions. Thanks to the tour, I saw a lot of hidden-away buildings that I would otherwise have missed. The area to the north of the Bazaar, with its narrow streets and steep descent to the Golden Horn, is very atmospheric and every bit as interesting as the Bazaar itself.

[ptemiz]

I have to agree about the area beytween the bazaar and the Golden Horn which I first started exploring in 1969 and am still walking around when I visit Istanbul in 2010. People are put off by the labryinthine streets and the crowds and frightened of getting lost. I tell them just head out of any exit on the 'backside' of the Grand Bazaar and wonder around as your fancy takes you. If you keep going downhill overall you will eventually emerge on the road next to the Golden Horn - you don't need maps or guides, just head downhill.