Istanbul: how to get from the airport to different parts of the city

How to get from Istanbul airport to the city center? This question is too complicated to give a brief and unequivocal answer to it. First, there are two international airports in Istanbul. City authorities promise to erect a third. But while the main air gates of Istanbul are the airports of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk and Sabiha Gokcen. Now another component of the question: what exactly is the center of the city? After all, the metropolis, which is inhabited by eighteen million people, is located on the two banks of the Bosphorus. So, part of it lies in Europe, and the other - in Asia. Based on the huge metropolitan area, the "center of the city" - the concept is also very stretchable. It is located both in Europe and in Asia. But, naturally, its geographical scope is much smaller. In this article, we will look at how a traveler arriving in Istanbul can get from his air harbors to the center. Here you will also find information for those who need to get to Atiburka Airport in Sabiha as quickly as possible, or vice versa.

What is the center of Istanbul

Let's just say: it lies within Constantinople. But the historical center of the city is very large. The Golden Horn Bay divides it into European and Asian parts. Guidebooks call the central two districts of Istanbul: Sultanahmet (where the main museums and mosques are located) and the center of the evening life - Taksim Square. Aksaray, Gulhane and Laleli are also of interest to the tourist. If you are interested in the palace of Sultan Topkapi, then you need it in Gulhane. If you are passing through Istanbul and you have two or three hours to visit the city, go bravely to Sultanahmet. Most of the main attractions are concentrated in this area. This is the Cathedral of Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, Hippodrome, Cistern and others. Want to go on a tour boat, walk along the Galata bridge, walk along Eminen embankment? This is the Fatih district (Istanbul). How to get from Ataturk Airport to all these attractions, read on.

Istanbul's main air gate

It is the oldest airport in the city. It was built in the European part of the metropolis. From the square of Sultanahmet it is separated by twenty-four kilometers. The airport has been named the first president of Turkey and the national hero since the eightieth year of the last century. Ataturk (so affectionately called this air harbor) is the third in Europe and the eleventh in the world by the number of serviced passengers. Naturally, the authorities of Istanbul pay great attention to the connection of the airport with the city. To him stretches the branch line. Find the station (it is finite) is not difficult. You just need to follow from the arrival zone to the right, following the signs "Metro Subway" to the escalator, which will take you down to the subway. For a one-time trip you need to buy a token, and if you plan to use public transportation often, get a better "Istanbul maps". From Ataturk there are direct buses to Taksim, Kozyatagy and Etyhler (Istanbul). How to get from the airport to the historical center, let's talk below. In the meantime, prices. The fare for a taxi is fifty lire, on the bus - ten, and on the metro - four.

Istanbul Atatürk Airport: how to get to the center

The hub connects to the city only one (red) branch of the metro. It does not follow in the most historical center. Tourists need to count out six stations and get off at the stop "Zeytinburnu". Having risen from under the ground, it is necessary to change seats on the high-speed tram T1. And he already passes all the interesting places: Aksaray, Laleli, Sultanahmet, Gulkhane. To taste delicious fish at the Galata Bridge, you need to get off at the T1 "Eminonyu" tram stop. When transplanting to another type of public transport, you need a new token. It should be lowered into the turnstile jack - otherwise do not go to the tram stop. Therefore, it is better to use the "Istanbul maps". It can be replenished for any amount. With it, moving around the biggest city of Turkey will be easier and cheaper. Do not think that a taxi in Istanbul is the fastest mode of transport. Traffic jams (for standing in them, too, the passenger pays) in the metropolis such that it is better to go by subway.

How to get to Taxim

This district of Istanbul is located in the Asian part of the city. For a long time, only a cable car climbed a high hill. Many guidebooks still point to the old way of getting from Istanbul airport to Taksimo. You need to go to the Zeytinburnu on the red branch (M1). Then transfer to the T1 high-speed tram and follow it until its final stop "Kabatash". There, find the lower funicular station and on this type of public transport go up to Taksim. But now the way to this center of evening fun is much simpler. The builders of the underground still paved the tunnel under the strait and extended a green branch to Taksim. So, to get to this area, you need to sit at the airport named after Kemal Ataturk on M1. Make a transfer at the station "Yenikapi". And already on M2 (green line) get to the stop "Taksim".

From Ataturk Airport by bus

For a long time this type of land transport was the only link between the air harbor and the Taksim area. If we ask the question of how to get to Istanbul from Ataturk Airport at night, but so that you do not overpay, then, after searching several possible options in search of an answer, we will stop on the bus. Passengers are served by the company "Khavatash". Its buses run from four in the morning until one in the morning. The interval between flights is only half an hour. The ticket costs ten lire, and the trip to Taksim will last about forty minutes (without traffic jams). A taxi is an option for a deaf hour of the night. The tram runs from six in the morning until midnight.

How to pass the time at Ataturk Airport

So, we landed at Ataturk Havalimani (Istanbul). How to get from the airport to the city day and night, we have already explained. It should be added that Istanbul is a huge metropolis, and the way to its center is not close. Therefore, if you have a gap between flights for two or three hours, you should not leave the airport of Ataturk. Believe me, there is something to do there, and time will fly by unnoticed. First of all, these are duty-free shops. Often in the halls of the terminals of the largest hub of Turkey art exhibitions are arranged. There are many cafes, restaurants, even a hairdresser. Wi-Fi is free in all terminals of the airport. Well, if you want a little sleep, then at your service waiting rooms of different comfort. In the immediate vicinity of the airport are five hotels. And one hotel is in walking distance and connected by a covered passage with a departure zone.

What other airports are there in Istanbul? Sabiha Gokcen: how to get to the city

This air harbor was built to unload the main gate of the city. One terminal was built in two thousand and seven, and the second - in the ninth year. It was decided to name the new airport in honor of Sabiha Gokcen. This is the first woman in Turkey, who became a military pilot. In addition, she was the adopted daughter of Kemal Ataturk. Earlier in the airport named after Sabiha Gokcen flew only liners of low-cost airlines, such as "Sanexpress" or "Pegasus". But now there are quite respectable carriers, like, for example, Turkistan Airlines. It can not be said that Sabiha airport has eclipsed the old hub, but it is quite catching up with it. In 2014, it served 23.5 million travelers. And this achievement makes the airport the eighteenth in Europe by passenger traffic. Travelers praise the new, modern and comfortable terminals of Sabiha. The only drawback is the lack of communication with the city. The airport was built in the Asian part of Istanbul, but very far from its center. It is separated from the Sultanahmet square fifty-five kilometers.

Transport connection

Unfortunately, from Istanbul to the airport named after Sabiha Gokcen the branch of the subway has not yet been stretched, and the high-speed tram does not go either. The only means of transportation are taxis and buses. And this remains the subject of frequent complaints from the passengers. It's not even about the high cost of a taxi. Traffic jams for Istanbul - a permanent phenomenon. They are not present only at night. Therefore, in order to catch the flight, the passenger must take into account that land transport can be delayed on the road for an hour, if not more. How to get from Sabiha airport to Istanbul? A taxi ride will cost from seventy lire (to the Kadikoy area) to one hundred and ten (to Sultanahmet). If you rented a car at the airport, take the E-80 motorway.

From Sabiha to Taksim and Sultanahmet

And now we will consider how to arrive in Istanbul by public transport. How to get from Sabiha Gokcen Airport, for example, to Taksim? We leave the international terminal and immediately get to the bus stop of the company "Havatash". Cars run every half hour almost round the clock (from four in the morning to one in the morning). The ticket costs fifteen lire, the trip (without taking into account traffic jams) will last an hour and a half. Before Sultanahmet and the surrounding central areas, it will be more difficult to get there. You can use the services of the same company "Havatash" and get to the pier Kadikoy, where the ferry goes to the pier Eminonyu. Across the street from the last one there will be a stop of the express train station, on which you need to drive three stops to get to Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque.

From Sabiha to the railway stations

If you plan to travel around Turkey by train, you need to first get to one of the two stations - Haydarpash or Sirkeci. These stations are located near the marinas. Haydarpash - near Kadikoy (Asian side), and Sirkeci - next to Eminenu (European). We have already explained how to get from Istanbul airport to Sultanahmet. To the stations you need to go the same way. In addition to the cars of the company "Khavatash", you can use ordinary city buses E-10 (makes intermediate stops) or E-11 (express). All of them follow to Kadikoy pier, from where it is not far to Haydarpasha. If your train departs from Sirkeci Station, you need to use the services of a ferry to get to the European side of Istanbul. But from the fourteenth year the tunnel under the Bosphorus - "Marmaray" operates. You can go down under the ground and take the subway. The stop is called "Sirkeci".

How to get from one airport to another

Quite often passengers who fly connecting flights, choose the place of transplantation Istanbul. How to get from Ataturk Airport to Sabiha? In addition to taxis, there is only one way. These are the buses of the company "Khavatash". You need to sit on the car that follows Taksim (read the sign on the electronic scoreboard on the windshield). And there already change seats to another bus, which goes to the airport of interest to you. The flights are planned so that you will not have to wait for the necessary cars for a long time. Nevertheless, on the way you will spend at least two and a half hours.