Modern hotels stand next to yalı
(waterfront wooden villas); marble
palaces abut on rustic stone fortresses
and elegant compounds neighbour
small fi shing villages.
The best way to see the Bosphorus is
to board one of the passenger boats
that regularly zigzag along the shores.
Embark at Eminönü and stop
alternately on the Asian and European
sides of the strait! The round-trip
excursion, very reasonably priced, takes
about six hours. For those who want
a private voyage, there are agencies
that specialize in organizing day or
night-time mini-cruises.
During the trip you will go past the
magnifi cent Dolmabahçe Palace, while
further along rise the green parks and
imperial pavilions of the Yıldız Palace.
To the waterfront of the parks stands
the Çırağan Palace, refurbished in 1874
by Sultan Abdülaziz, and now restored
as a grand hotel. For 300m along the
Bosphorus shore, its ornate marble
facades refl ect the swi ly moving
water. At Ortaköy, the next stop, every