Posts tagged as:

Public Transportation

Getting Around in Istanbul by Ferry or Sea Bus

Image of a sea bus or quick ferry docking in Istanbul, Turkey.

by Istanbul Trails

in City Trip, Transportation

Istanbul is surrounded and divided by water. Because of this you’ll see a bustling activity of floating devices on the Bosphorus, the Sea of Marmara and in the Golden Horn. A whole array of water-borne craft, ranging from privately owned (fishing) boats, over regular ferries (vapur) to a fleet of high-speed catamaran sea buses (deniz [...]

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Why You Should Avoid Taking a Bus in Istanbul

Picture of a municipality (IETT) bus in Istanbul, Turkey.

by Istanbul Trails

in City Trip, Transportation

Istanbul has plenty of excellent public transportation options, but the inner-city buses are in my opinion not one of them. For starters, it is not the quickest means of transportation. Unlike Istanbul’s tram and metro system, they don’t have their own lanes and therefore suffer from the chronic Istanbul traffic jams. Secondly, it is not [...]

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Getting Around in Istanbul by Metro, Tram and Funicular

Picture of the tram in Kabataş, Istanbul.

by Istanbul Trails

in City Trip, Transportation

The most efficient and cheap way to get from a to b in Istanbul by public transportation is undoubtedly by metro, tram, funicular and/or ferry. These means of public transportation are very efficient, quick and punctual. Not in the least because they don’t suffer from Istanbul’s constantly clogged streets. In this article I focus [...]

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Benefits of Using Akbil as Your Istanbul Public Transportation Pass

Picture of the akbil attached to a keychain

by Istanbul Trails

in City Trip, Expat Stay, My Tips & Tricks, Transportation

The akbil electronic travel pass is definitely the best feature of the constantly improving Istanbul public transportation network. Akbil is short for ‘akıllı bilet‘, which means intelligent ticket. And that’s exactly what it is. It’s a basically a small stainless steel button in a plastic holder, together not bigger in size than any key on [...]

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Should I Get the New Istanbul Kart or Stick With Akbil?

Image of the newly introduced Istanbul Card (Istanbul Kart)

by Istanbul Trails

in City Trip, Expat Stay, My Tips & Tricks, Transportation

The brand new Istanbul Card (İstanbul Kart) was proudly introduced in the spring of 2009 by the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality as a card with which you will be able to pay for all your Istanbul transportation, cultural and entertainment activities. In a first phase, the İstanbul Kart will replace the currently used akbil as a [...]

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How and Where to Take a Dolmuş or Shared Taxi in Istanbul

Picture of a (sponsored) dolmuş in Istanbul.

by Istanbul Trails

in City Trip, Transportation

Dolmuş is the Turkish word for filled, stuffed or full, and refers to the yellow shared taxis or minibuses that operate in Istanbul and elsewhere in Turkey. They are an easy, quick and useful means of transportation for small rides to and from destinations just outside the city center. But, what destinations do they cover, [...]

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Istanbul Taxi Fares for Popular Tourist Destinations

Taxi in Istanbul, Turkey

by Istanbul Trails

in City Trip, Transportation

I wrote in an earlier post that a minority of Istanbul’s taxi drivers are not shy of hustling tourists. So I thought it would be helpful to provide my readers with a cab fare list for trips from Sultanahmet or Taksim to the most common Istanbul tourist destinations or the airports. This way you’ll be [...]

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How To Take A Taxi In Istanbul Without Being Hustled?

Official taxis is Istanbul always have a taxi sign on the roof of the car.

by Istanbul Trails

in City Trip, Transportation, Visa, Money & Safety

By far the most convenient (but not always the quickest) way to get around in Istanbul is by taxi. They are plentiful, operate day and night, take up to four persons, are compared to the US or Europe fairly cheap, and they can be easily hailed on the street or found at taxi ranks. Unfortunately, [...]

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