Istanbul and the Black Sea in a week
Nature · most requested · Istanbul → Trabzon → Uzungöl
Three days in Istanbul, then four days in Trabzon: Uzungöl, Sümela Monastery and the Ayder plateau.
Day 1: The Ottoman heart of Istanbul
Every stop today is within walking distance in Sultanahmet.
-
9:00
Hagia Sophia
Start early, before the crowds, to see the famous dome in peace. Hagia Sophia is a mosque today, so respect prayer times and dress modestly.
5-minute walk -
10:30
Topkapı Palace
Home of the Ottoman sultans for about four centuries: the courtyards, the Harem, the Treasury and the Sacred Relics.
10-minute walk -
14:00
Lunch: Sultanahmet köfte
Grilled köfte with white bean salad is the area's best-known dish.
5-minute walk -
15:30
Basilica Cistern
An underground Byzantine water reservoir held up by hundreds of columns, including the two Medusa heads.
5-minute walk -
17:00
Blue Mosque and Sultanahmet Square
Visit the mosque outside prayer times, then stroll the square at sunset.
10-minute walk -
19:00
Grand Bazaar
A walk through one of the oldest covered markets in the world before closing, or save it for the morning of day three.
Day 2: The Bosphorus and the palaces
A day on the European shore of the Bosphorus, with a cruise between two continents.
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9:00
Dolmabahçe Palace
The last palace of the sultans, with crystal chandeliers and a long waterfront façade.
5-minute walk to Kabataş pier -
11:30
Bosphorus cruise
From Kabataş or Eminönü, past palaces, bridges and waterside villages.
15-minute taxi -
14:00
Ortaköy
Lunch on stuffed baked potato (kumpir) beside Ortaköy Mosque under the Bosphorus Bridge.
20-minute taxi -
16:30
Galata Tower
Panoramic views over the historic peninsula and the Golden Horn.
10-minute walk -
18:30
İstiklal Avenue and Taksim Square
Istanbul's best-known pedestrian street: shops, sweets and the historic red tram.
Day 3: Markets and the Asian side
Shopping in the old markets in the morning, then across the water to Asia.
-
9:30
Spice Bazaar
Spices, Turkish delight, nuts and tea in Eminönü.
15-minute walk -
11:00
Süleymaniye Mosque
Mimar Sinan's masterpiece, with a courtyard overlooking the Golden Horn.
20-minute ferry from Eminönü -
13:00
Üsküdar and Maiden's Tower
Lunch on the Asian shore facing Maiden's Tower.
15-minute taxi -
15:30
Çamlıca Grand Mosque
A huge modern mosque on a hill overlooking Istanbul from the Asian side.
25-minute taxi -
17:30
Kadıköy and Moda
Kadıköy's food market, then a walk along the Moda seafront at sunset.
Day 4: Arriving in Trabzon
A morning domestic flight from Istanbul to Trabzon.
-
8:00
Fly to Trabzon
A domestic flight from either Istanbul airport. Pick up a hire car at the airport if you will drive.
Taxi to the hotel -
13:00
Central Trabzon
Meydan square, the markets, and a fish lunch (hamsi anchovies in season).
15-minute taxi -
18:00
Boztepe hill
Tea with views over the city and the Black Sea at sunset.
Day 5: Lake Uzungöl
About 100 km from Trabzon, roughly an hour and a half by car on a mountain road.
-
8:30
The road to Uzungöl
A beautiful mountain road along the valley, through tea gardens and forest.
Arrive at the lake -
10:30
Lake Uzungöl
A walk around the lake, the wooden mosque and the houses perched on the hills.
-
14:00
Trout lunch
Restaurants serving farmed trout from the valley on the lake shore.
30-minute drive -
16:00
Uzungöl plateaus
Drive up to the surrounding plateaus for a view of the lake from above.
Back to Trabzon, or stay the night
Day 6: Sümela Monastery and the valley
An old monastery clinging to a cliff in a dense forest.
-
9:00
Sümela Monastery
A landmark carved into the cliff inside a national park, reached by a forest path.
Car -
13:30
Lunch in the valley
Country restaurants by the river in the forest.
-
16:00
Shopping in Trabzon
Tea, hazelnuts, honey and leather goods from the city market.
Day 7: The Ayder plateau
A long day trip to the Ayder plateau in Rize, then back for your flight.
-
8:00
The road to Ayder
A coastal then mountain road past the tea plantations of Rize.
Arrive at the plateau -
11:30
Ayder plateau
Wooden houses, green meadows and the Gelin Tülü waterfall.
-
15:00
Back and fly home
Return to Trabzon airport and fly to Istanbul or home.
Photos from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Photographers and licences.