Neighborhood 48H guide

Eminönü & Sirkeci: Where to Stay & What to Do in 48 Hours

The Spice Bazaar and the ferry piers.

Şehir Hatları ferry approaching Eminönü
Photo: Calistemon · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Eminönü is the old city’s waterfront: the Spice Bazaar, the ferry piers for the Bosphorus and the Asian side, and Sirkeci station just east.

Photo gallery

Why stay here

Every ferry and the tram at your door.

Who it's for: Ferry fans and food lovers.

Pros

  • Ferries
  • Food
  • Transit

Cons

  • Very busy
  • Traffic
  • Noisy

48H in Eminönü & Sirkeci

The Spice Bazaar and the ferry piers.

  1. 09:30 – Spice Bazaar

    Spices, Turkish delight and dried fruit.

  2. 10:35 – Bosphorus tour

    Şehir Hatları long tour from Eminönü.

Named recommendations

Real places with links to their official site or a Maps place page. We do not invent hours, prices, or ratings.

Shop

Outdoors

  • Şehir Hatları ferry approaching Eminönü

    Outdoors

    Şehir Hatları Bosphorus tours

    Eminönü pier

    City ferry tours up the Bosphorus from Eminönü, short and long routes.

    Photo: Calistemon · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
    Official site / map →

Where to stay

Specific named properties—not vague city-wide searches. Expedia stays use tracked Creator links; others open the hotel's official site.

Roam48 may earn a commission when you book a stay through Expedia or Vrbo links on this page, at no extra cost to you. All commercial stay links use rel="sponsored nofollow".

Vacation rentals

Prefer an apartment or whole home in this neighborhood? Browse Vrbo listings for Eminönü & Sirkeci.

In Türkiye, renting out a whole home to visitors for 100 days or less needs a Tourism Purpose Residence Permit from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, and in apartment buildings every owner must agree. Unpermitted rentals face fines that start at 100,000 TL per home under the 2023 law and rise if the rental continues. Before booking on Vrbo, check that the listing shows a ministry permit number.

Browse vacation rentals in Eminönü & Sirkeci on Vrbo →

Other ways to spend 48 hours in Istanbul