This place that is located underneath The Point Hotel is a must go, gamer or not! I really think…read moreyou can find something down there to really enjoy and have you playing for hours. Its a big room full of PlayStation products, PC games, a few Wiis, Darts, arcade games and more. Every time I'm in the hotel, I at least go down there for a quick season of fun and end up staying a little while wonder than I expected. You can come there even if your not a guest of the hotel, there will be a fee, which I'm not certain of right now. What you waiting for go there and enjoy! Games till 2 am!

This is a must-see in Istanbul!…read more LOCATION It's in a different area than the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sofia so it takes a bit of a tram ride, but it's worth it. TIMING We were not prepared for the sheer size of this palace. Holy COW. We came midday with a few other things to do in the area, and could have left much more time to go slower but still very much enjoyed spending ~2 hours here. This palace is soooo huge, and they have different areas throughout the buildings with exhibitions and displays. See as many as you can! I recommend starting on the right side and working back and around from there. ATTRACTIONS Most of the attraction is the sheer magnificence of the interior decor and design in the palace: chandeliers, stunning rooms and spaces, and lots of art. NO PICS?!? The biggest bummer and reason for docking a star: NO PHOTOS?! You're telling me you're gonna show me the most magnificent castle and I can't take a pic?! That was a huge bummer. You can be sneaky but they do have guards everywhere. What's the harm in a little no-flash memory of the space? AMENITIES They have a cafe and a restaurant onsite, as well as restrooms and some gardens with benches to relax. You'll need it from walking around the massive palace!

A top sight in Istanbul. I liked the walk through that you do through the main building. There…read moreare no photos allowed but it's a huge palace like something you would see in Europe. Outside there are some beautiful views of the coast and city and lovely gardens to walk through. I bought my tickets that day it wasn't too long in the morning. Like any other place, you have to go through security and another line for tickets and then another to enter. It was my favorite place to visit. In the spring the tulips were nice.

One of the most amazing places I've ever seen, let me start with the negatives so you're prepared…read more Even in the off season, it's crowded. Part of the crowd are guided tours, quite the nuisance and do not fall prey to the multitude of charlatans aggressively touting their personal guide services. What you need instead is a little personal research using Rick Steves, Lonely Planet, or National Geographic tour guides. Be prepared for the steep admission charge, and remember this is a must see, and an expensive place to maintain, it's in constant restoration. That may interfere with good PICs that show the majesty of the place, but certainly doesn't subtract from the historic experience. This was the third church built in the same location, it is the archetype of Byzantine Architecture, built by famed mathematicians Anthemios and Isidoros as ordered by Emperor Justinianos in 532 to 537. That was very fast in those days, and impossible today, renovations will take twice as long. It survived sacking and looting by the Fourth Crusade and being converted to a mosque by the Ottomans. In fact, ruing the reign of Murad III, architect Sinan added buttresses and Islamic artistic touches that reinforced the structure to endure earthquakes. It's one of the many UNESCO World Heritage sites in Turkey, it is a museum and a mosque. The breathtaking and dizzying dome reads: "Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth. His light is like a niche in which there is a lamp, the lamp is in a crystal, the crystal is like a shining star, lit from (the oil of) a blessed olive tree, (located) neither to the east nor the west, whose oil would almost glow, even without being touched by fire." (Nur, 24/35) The work of Kazasker Mustafa Izzet Efendi,calligrapher during the reign of Sultan Abdulmejid. Dress appropriately and respectfully, it's still a mosque.

This is an Orthodox Church that convert to mosque. This may be happen during Ottoman era in 1453…read more This history site is classified as museum and it is classified as Ayasofya Cami. You need a ticket to visit for non Muslim visitors. You can buy the combo ticket with Hagia Sophia museum or building visit along. Price is not cheap. The interior can spot some mosaic tile with orthodox figures. The ticket only allows second floor visit. The wall is kind of cover up with huge platt. You won't see the wall painting. However you can see how big is the dome. Visit take you one hours.

One of my favorite things we did! Definitely worth seeing. Take your time! It's also nice and cool…read moredown there so it's a nice break from the sun.

Basilica Cistern is so stunning! I had NO idea what to expect, but had heard this was a must-see in…read moreIstanbul. LOCATION It has a prime location right in the square near Hagia Sofia and Blue Mosque. It's underground so you won't see much above ground/a huge building, but you'll see the line forming. PRICE Tickets are NOT cheap at around 30 euro, but for us, it was a highlight so was worth it. The line was quite scary, but it moved rather quickly! You can also buy skip the line tickets if you've got a busy day. HISTORY This is a large underground water resovoir with huge vaulted ceilings and hundreds of Roman-style columns. It still holds a bit of water inside, and learning about the history with the plaques onsite and the audioguide was seriously impressive! INSIDE It's just magnificent walking on the platforms through the space, admiring the sheer magnitude of the columns. They've done a great job of uplighting, and the lighting changes every few minutes to give different perspectives and ambiance. They also have some cool art installations here that add to the space! This is a photo op heaven, and we never felt crowded inside as there was plenty of walkway and you cover a lot of ground inside. A must do in IST!

I went to a "Yabangee" meetup here. First off, I should mention I don't usually go to foreigners…read moreevents in Istanbul because I prefer to be among Turks for various reasons, but my co-worker told me about it and I thought why the hell not. Everything about it kinda sucks, but I give them two stars for location and a beautiful building. The music was also surprisingly interesting, not the usual crap Istanbul bars play. The things that suck are the service and the prices. These bartenders have no idea how to serve a crowd. I waited for 15+ minutes due to--get this--a lack of glasses. The dishwasher had to be run in order for my wine to be served. Uhhh...lolwut? Turned out there were other people waiting for glasses too, so when he took 'em out, I wasn't even served immediately. I ordered my friend a cocktail that didn't come, even after repeating the order three times. They didn't know how to make it or they just didn't want to I guess. So I left the bar without paying for my wine. And apparently they didn't notice that either. Also, glasses are served half full. Such a lame tactic. SOOO overpriced. Expect to pay over 35 lira for a cocktail or 14 lira for wine. A bottle of Efes, at 35 ml, is 12. I wouldn't pay that much anywhere in Istanbul. Unless it's the top of the Marmara hotel.

Just behind the Flower Passage, this 3 storey venue usually hosts creative foreign and local live…read moreacts. You can discover alternative music bands, even see African or Romanian musicians performing. Customers tend to be young artistic or upmarket crowd. The entrance fee is a bit pricey but worth of the entertainment and drinks inside.

This museum is located behind Topkapi Palace so if you are going there, you might as well come…read morehere. It wasn't nearly as crowded as the other museums and features artifacts from nearly all periods and civilizations in history. The history of coinage, archaeological artifacts, and Greek statutes, this museum is a must see. I would suggest going early in the morning to beat any crowds.

I would also consider this a must-see in Istanbul, it's quite a collection of artifacts across the…read morelong history of what is now Turkiye and what was the Ottoman Empire. The descriptions are in Turkish and English, you really don't need a guide, so ignore them around the entrance. I can tell from the YELP reviews over time and from the new appearance of many of the rooms that there's been quite a bit of improvement over time. This started out as a sarcophagi museum but expanded, the collection still seems to be expanding. It was nice to visit here after having seen Ephesus, Bergama, and Sagalassos; and I would very much like to return to Turkey to visit some of the many other Greek and Roman sites. There are two other must-see museums in Istanbul, Topkapi Palace and the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Art. Topkapi is much more expensive than the other two, we only realized too late to get the museum pass that will really save you money if you're going to visit these and other museums. Allow at least 3-4 hours here, and bring some cat treats to make friends with the felines in front.

Underneath Istanbul are many ancient cisterns to help store water thousands of years ago. This one…read moreis an alternative to the Basilica Cistern and cheaper to get in. Go inside and purchase tickets. It's around $25, but much cheaper for locals. (As it should be.) Walk down the stairs to the dark space where a light show plays for around 10 minutes. It's a unique experience but worth it only once in my opinion. It is wild to think this cistern was lost for years before rediscovered.

It's okay, unless you're easily impressed with light shows (which honestly could be better here)…read more The cistern is very small and there's not much to do for more than 15 mins. For the money, go to the Basilica Cistern aka Yerebatan Sarnici.

I echo what others have mentioned that this is a great place to get some work done on your laptop…read moreand use free wifi! When you enter you have to go through security checkpoint, and I was a little confused if this place is for the public or for researchers or if you need a special library card, but it is open to the gen public! There are several areas of note here: 1) Directly upstairs to your left enter through glass door for the library. There are tons of cozy nooks for plugging in your laptop, many chairs even have these giant bean bags for resting your feet. And in the far back corner there is this odd treehouse-like compartment nook for two people to study, nab it if you can! 2) Up the stairs and straight ahead is a cafe with large windows and natural light if you need caffeine/snack to work! 3) Downstairs is a free museum! This place is great, only thing is the wifi was a bit of a hassle to access (i.e., they send an access code to your phone via text and then it will only work for one device, etc.). Other than that it couldn't be better!

My favorite place to work in all of Istanbul! The library space is quiet; the wifi is fast, the…read morelight is great; and there's a yummy cafe on site with good cappuccinos.