Grand Bazaar (Kapalı Çarşı) travel guide

Bargain away! More than 10,000 vendors and an endless corridor of shopping opportunities.

The Grand Bazaar feels like a gigantic labyrinth: Endless alleys crossing each other, and only a few of them leading outside the market. With 10,000 vendors, it's hard to come out empty-handed, although making up your mind what and where to buy will take good eyes - and good negotiation skills!
It is in the heart of the Old Town. Each visitor, entering it for the first time through one of its 17 gates, will inevitably get lost in the many lanes and will be glad to recover eventually at one of the tea houses. The ancient shopping mall stretches from the Nuruosmaniye up to the Beyazıt Mosque over an area of approximately 34,000 ft. and offers everything a tourist could want -- from carpets and jewels to leather clothing. The market is traditionally organized according to individual trades; each handicraft has its own area. Nowadays, goods are mainly sold and not manufactured anymore, even if there are still individual coppersmiths and cutters. Nevertheless the basic structure has been retained. The Old Bedesten (a masonry structure for storage and safekeeping) is located in the center. Here you can buy old silver jewels and original Russian or Greek icons. This oldest part of the bazaar was built by Mehmet II shortly after the conquest of Constantinople. In the following hundred years, the other areas were added gradually. A particularly interesting corner is the book bazaar (Sahaflar) next to the Beyazıt Mosque. If you leave the bazaar through one of the gates facing the Golden Horn, you can walk to the sea through the craftsmans' quarter of Tahtakale.

Grand Bazaar (Kapalı Çarşı) travel guide by is this text outdated?

Latest Reviews for Grand Bazaar (Kapalı Çarşı)

Have you been here? Write a quick review:

 You are currently not logged in. Login or register to write a review.

jpuhrer

Probably the largest covered bazaar in the world offers you everything from textiles, to leather products, to silver and gold products, and on and on... Don't get lost in the maze!

2008-05-19 / follow jpuhrer / report abuse