Istiklal Street and Taksim Square Audio Guide Tour

u0130stiklal Street, in short

The busiest street in Turkey u2014 a kilometre and a half of shops, arcades, cinemas, bookshops and meyhanes running from Taksim Square down to the Tu00fcnel funicular.

It was the Grande Rue de Pu00e9ra, the European quarter's main artery, and the 19th-century embassies, passages and apartment blocks are still standing behind the shopfronts.

What it costs

The street is free to walk. The guided walking tour, which is what gets you into the arcades and the history behind the facades, is u20ac8 separately and included on the pass.

Getting there

Take the M2 metro to Taksim for the top of the street, or to u015eiu015fhane for the bottom. Walking down from Taksim is easier than walking up.

The vintage tram

The red tram has run the length of u0130stiklal for decades and is as much a fixture as the street itself. It is slower than walking, and that is not the point.

u00c7iu00e7ek Pasaju0131, the Flower Passage

An 1870s arcade off the middle of the street, now lined with meyhanes under a glass roof. The name comes from the White Russian u00e9migru00e9s who sold flowers here after fleeing the revolution.

Nevizade and the back streets

Behind the Flower Passage, Nevizade Street is the heart of the area's nightlife u2014 tables spilling out of fish restaurants and meyhanes, busiest from mid-evening onward. The Atlas Passage, another 1870s arcade, and a handful of old cinemas are within a few minutes' walk.