Buyukada, despite all its extreme beauty and cuteness, and its appearance that has nothing to do with the chaos of Istanbul, is referred to as the “Cursed Island” in our personal history.. Because every attempt to go to Büyükada in our 25 years of life resulted in various disasters and nonsense such as illness, injury, minor car accident, fighting with a lover and returning halfway.. But we did not give up and finally we managed to set foot on Büyükada.. The secret is that you don’t have a girlfriend, friends, we suggest you go to Büyükada when you don’t have a girlfriend… (Just the Jealous)

If we put our personal disasters aside, we can say that we were totally hit on Büyükada.. We must have really loved it since we kept wandering around thinking “I wish someone we knew had a house here” during the whole Büyükada trip.. (Please note that we don’t want a house for ourselves because our vision is as big as lentils) It is officially a part of Istanbul, has nothing to do with the chaos of Istanbul, has no houses, streets, no cars, and bicycle transportation is at its peak. makes you feel like you’ve been teleported to Wonderland. We are sure that most of you have already experienced the excitement of what we have written, since you have already set foot on Büyükada, but we are new, so accept us as such.

Let’s not go too far, Buyukada Travel Guide !

When to Go to Büyükada?

Actually, we should change this title as “When Not to Go to Büyükada”.. Because going to Büyükada on weekends and holidays feels like you took the metrobus after work and spent a full day in that metrobus.. For this reason, if you have the chance, it is best to go to the island on weekdays.. If we think seasonally, the best time to go to Büyükada is definitely spring.. Because in winter, flights can be delayed due to weather conditions and “What would be the 3 things I would take with me if I landed on a not very deserted island?” You may be alone with the question. For the summer, we can say this: May God not test anyone by climbing the slope of the Aya Yorgi Church in the heat, my lord, our religion is amen.

Getting to Büyükada

Of course, we don’t need to tell you how to reach an “island”, probably by ferry etc.. you’re going to get on something, you’re not in a mood to get off with an airship. Although there are several different companies and options for this (such as IDO or Turyol), the best option in our opinion is to go with the Şehir Hatları ferry.. If the weather is sunny, there is no one prettier than you.. You can engage in all sorts of nostalgic activities such as observing the brothers who sell “The King of England, the late President Kennedy, the Uncrowned King Pele, Cemil of Fenerbache, they all use this product”, eating steamer toast, throwing bagels at the seagulls, and you can maximize your enjoyment of your Büyükada adventure before you even reach the island. .

You have 3 options for the point where you will get on the ferry; Kadıköy, Bostancı and Kabataş. You can check the times of Bostancı here, and the other two here.

-The ferry arrives at Büyükada after stopping at Kınalıada, Heybeliada and Burgazada.

-As you know, there is a promise of transportation within Büyükada by car. not the subject. But don’t worry, there is such an intense use of phaetons that it will prevent you from saying “life without a car, oh how comfortable”.. WE ARE AGAINST THE USE OF PATCHES, and we will continue to oppose the use of a carriage unless there is a regulation on this issue and there is no intervention in the uninterrupted working of those animals for hours every day under difficult conditions.. Be sure, if you see horses that fall to the ground from exhaustion in the heat or try to carry people on the slope in a miserable state, you will feel the same, we do not feel unnecessary.. Therefore, if you are not comfortable with walking for miles, you can rent a bicycle and do what you cannot do in Istanbul, and enjoy cycling.. As long as you don’t share 700 photos with your bike, we are human too.

Where to Stay in Büyükada?

Many hotel options in Büyükada available. But among them, in our opinion, the best is arguably Splendid Palace. As a matter of fact, this hotel is beautiful and historical, which can even be included in the list of places to visit in Büyükada. It serves with all its beauty and splendor.. Already from the moment we saw the hotel, we were ashamed that we went with a backpack and sneakers on our feet.. One comes to that hotel with prom dresses, long gloves, pearl necklace and cigarette holder.. Or it can be with a charismatic hat, big glass glasses and a typewriter… (You know, we can keep this deer going forever) So much so that even our Ata stayed there when he went to Büyükada, it will probably be classy.

By the way, if you have become a member of our association of those who love Wes Anderson, of which we are co-chairmen, you will realize how much the Splendid Palace reminds of the Grand Budapest Hotel, especially with the use of color and furniture.. The bar area, the courtyard area, the reception, it all looks like something straight out of a Wes Anderson movie, and we’re sure you’ll be photographed for at least 40 minutes.

The Splendid Hotel is located on 23 Nisan Street.. In other words, after getting off the ferry, it is a 4-5 minute walk from the pier and is at a very central point.. If you can get a room from the front, a wonderful sea & Istanbul view accompanies you even without leaving the room.. Go, I’m sure you’ll love it as much as we do and praise those who come before you.

*At this point, it might be a good idea to tell you about Artıway.. You may have probably come across it before, but let’s not withhold what we know anyway.. Artıway is a system that allows you to cash back some of your spending on the websites you shop on the Internet.. We have been using it for many years, especially when we are dealing with hotels (from sites such as booking and hotels.com), car rental.. Regardless of the travel area, you may want to take a look at Artıway, especially if you shop frequently, as it covers many brands in many different categories such as Trendyol, Nike, Teknosa, The Body Shop, Media Markt, Gratis, Koçtaş.. If you want to become a member, you can solve this issue via this link.. (A bonus such as 10 TL is added to your account when you become a member via the link)

Places to Visit in Büyükada

Do you intend to stay on the island or go to Büyükada? We don’t know if you have planned a day trip.. However, the Büyükada travel guide of your family’s blog, OitheBlog, will of course serve both purposes. , the choice is entirely up to you. If you want to fit it in a day, it is enough to start the day a little early.. Then we couldn’t see it, we couldn’t grow it here, don’t be said that we couldn’t drink our coffee with a taste, we never listen.

The main theme of visiting Büyükada is of course, getting lost in the streets.. Because you are in Istanbul, but actually it is not like Istanbul at all.. If you are visiting a part of Turkey’s most chaotic city, where do these beautiful houses, this greenery, this calmness come from? Why do so many writers come and stay here, on what basis do many people decide to flee the center and settle here? After exploring the streets of Büyükada, sticking your head around the gardens of the houses, and looking towards the sea once in a while while climbing the slopes, we are sure that the island will at least give you the answer to the last question on its own.. Now, let’s take a look at the places to visit in Büyükada.

Aya Yorgi Church

The clearest question of what is the most touristic activity of Büyükada? Aya Yorgi Church is located at a point overlooking Büyükada.. Imagine a point that looks so high that your mother cries, gets offended by your shoes, fights with your legs until you climb the hill, if you are a smoker, you call the quit line in the middle of the slope and cry loudly.

As one of the pilgrimage points in Turkey by Christians. As you can understand, the importance of the Hagia Yorgi Church, which is accepted, is quite large.. So much so that the main reason why the island is full on April 23, a special day for Orthodox people, is actually based on this.. Because if you complete that crazy hill and reach the top with bare feet and without speaking, there is a belief that you are a “semi-pilgrim” (like the name of a superhero).. If we leave the religious part aside, when you reach the hill, an incredible view will be waiting for you as well as the church, which, in our opinion, is the biggest motivation for climbing that hill without giving up.

You will see threads and you probably won’t be able to make sense of it like we did.. The explanation of those ropes is as follows: If you open a reel of rope and pull it upwards, your destiny will be opened.. Now we don’t know whether you will marry Thor or have a lightning wedding to Gigi Hadid.

-If you want to enter the church, it closes at 16:00, so especially considering that you will have to spend a lot of time climbing the slope first. It is better not to be too late.

Islands Museum

The Islands Museum seriously surprised us. Because they created such a comprehensive and beautiful museum that frankly, we encountered something beyond our expectations.. The museum has two different exhibition areas, one is the “Çınar Museum Area” consisting of open-air exhibitions and the other is the “Aya Nikola Hangar Museum Area”.. Especially the Hangar Museum Area was really incredibly comprehensive.. He explains in great detail many subjects from the geological formation of the Islands to their current state.. You have the chance to learn about many different subjects such as the first settlements on the Islands, architecture, education, literature, immigration, traditions and music.. It is impossible not to enjoy it, as they use very strong visual elements, we definitely think you should spend a few hours here.

-Many famous writers such as Halikarnas Balıkçısı, Ziya Gökalp, Yakup Kadri Karaosmanoğlu, Melih Cevdet Anday, Sait Faik have a certain part of their life. He spent his period in the Islands and there is a section dedicated to them in the museum.. Don’t miss it, we enjoyed it very much.

-Open from 09:00 to 18:00 except Monday.

-There are discounts for museum card holders and students.

Yılmaztürk Street

We wanted to write Yılmaztürk Street specifically. Because although we kept talking about that you can see many magnificent houses in Büyükada, we did not mention any point where you can see them specifically.. As a matter of fact, there are houses all over the island where you can say “oh WHO IS THIS HOUSE” and question your own life?. However, if you don’t have much time to wander around, you can turn your route directly to Yılmaztürk Street, because this place is full of houses that have died of beauty.

Büyükada Greek Orphanage

This Buyukada Greek Orphanage. It was built as a hotel by a French company at the time, but when the necessary documents could not be obtained to become a hotel, the building was put up for sale and then started to be used as an orphanage.. Currently under the auspices of the Greek Patriarchate, the building is also known as one of the largest wooden buildings in Europe.. Unfortunately, it’s in a complete ruin right now, it’s terribly neglected and it’s falling apart.. We wanted to go and see it, but even though we went to the door, we could not get any closer.. You don’t have a chance to get into it because it’s dangerous right now, because many of its points are rotten or destroyed.. Still, it can be seen while you are out exploring the island.

Eating and Drinking in Büyükada

The question of what to eat and drink on Büyükada is dozens of times for us. no answer. There are many venues on the island that are not very different from each other, especially for the raki&fish&meze trio, and people generally prefer one of them.. Apart from this, even chain coffee shops that you can see all over Istanbul, such as Starbucks and Kahve Dünyası, have reached the Islands.. Of course, there are still a few of our favourites, a place we will stop by on our next visits, and we will not pass without mentioning them as part of the Büyükada Travel Guide, here you go:

Sinek Cafe in the Garden: Both breakfast and afternoon snack, cute place where you can go for a coffee break. The garden is very suitable for being lazy in nice weather, the owners are very friendly and sincere people, and this of course is reflected in what you eat and drink.. In our opinion, it is one of the best alternatives on the island.. (Yılmaztürk Caddesi No:106)

Lido Restaurant: Lido is one of the rings of a chain of restaurants near the pier on the island, which are similar in style and visually.. But is it bad? Yoo, that’s pretty cool. We didn’t try fish, but we vouch for their appetizers.. We do not think that they are very successful in squid and mussels, other than that, we think there is no problem.. After all, you’re drinking raki by the sea, how bad could it be?

That’s Here: At the top of the hill, farther from the restaurants on the beach, Here’s the place with regulars. , another place to make raki fish. It’s nice that it offers you a different view since it stays above.. If you eat and drink, you can choose it as a quieter alternative in the Lido Restaurant standards mentioned above.. (23 Nisan Caddesi No:24)

Cafe Spitz: Sweet cafe within Splendid Palace. You can choose it especially for a coffee break & sweet snack.. We just think that it is closed at certain times of the year, so it’s a good idea to check if it’s open before you go.. (Splendid Palace)

Acacia: If you are tired of fish and you are looking for different tastes, you can choose pasta, hamburger etc.. cafe where you can find alternatives. Also, their coffee was very tasty and it’s quite pleasant to sit in in nice weather as the outdoor area is quite large.. We just want to call out to the authorities from here, would you like to turn that music down a bit? (23 Nisan Caddesi No:49)