Byzantium
Byzantium or Byzantion was an ancient Greek city in classical antiquity that became known as Constantinople in late antiquity and Istanbul in modern times.
Byzantium or Byzantion was an ancient Greek city in classical antiquity that became known as Constantinople in late antiquity and Istanbul in modern times. The Greek name Byzantion and its Latinization Byzantium continued to be used as a name of Constantinople sporadically and to varying degrees during the thousand-year existence of the Eastern Roman Empire, which also became known by the former name of the city as the Byzantine Empire. Byzantium was colonised by Greeks from Megara in the 7th century BC and remained primarily Greek-speaking until its conquest by the Ottoman Empire in 1453.
Adapted from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
What Wikivoyage says to see
The Turkish government offers a museum pass for Istanbul's many sights and museums, and key spots on Sultanahmet, for €105 as of April 2025. The pass can be bought at the entrance of many museums or online. Check out what is included, and buy it if it makes sense for you. Numerous sights can still be seen for free and the biggest joy is probably just walking around and sucking in the atmosphere.
From Wikivoyage: Byzantium, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.
Things to do
Hamam – Sultanahmet has many historical hamams. Some are very extravagant and cater mainly to tourists. Waterpipe – Most of the places where you can smoke a nargile are in Yeniçeriler Caddesi, near the Kapalı Çarşı (Grand Bazaar).
From Wikivoyage: Byzantium, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.
Where to eat
For a full-on culinary experience, one should look for esnaf lokantası restaurants. They are essentially old-school canteens with a variety of traditional selections from soups to main courses to desserts. Balık-Ekmek.
From Wikivoyage: Byzantium, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.
Getting to Byzantium
- Airports
- Istanbul Sabiha Gökçen (SAW), 30 km · İstanbul (IST), 36 km · Hasan Polatkan (AOE), 187 km
- Eskişehir → Byzantium189 km · quickest by road, 4h 32m · ₺510–670
- Edremit → Byzantium229 km · quickest by road, 4h 41m · ₺650–870
- Gaziemir → Byzantium337 km · quickest by air, 5h 9m · ₺2,420–3,730
- Plan a tripFrom anywhereThe planner compares every way there from wherever you are.
Road and air are today’s quick answer; timetabled trains, buses and ferries load on the results page from the operators’ feeds.
No local-transport research exists yet for Byzantium
Our researched notes are written from a sourced entry: every shared taxi, boat and village bus with its operator, its rule, its fare and the year we saw it, and what could not be confirmed. Nobody has done that work for Byzantium. What is above is what we hold from open sources; nothing here pretends to be more.
- Get inIt starts in the western suburbs at Bağcılar (for Metro M1) and runs via some 20 stations including Zeytinburnu (for Marmaray and Metro M1), Topkapı (district not palace, for Marmaray and Tram T4), Yusufpaşa (for Metro M1), Aksaray, Laleli-Universite (for Metro M2 and Grand Bazaar), Beyazit, Çemberlitaş, Sultanahmet (for Blue Mosque), Gülhane (for park), Sirkeci (for Marmaray and Tram U3) and Eminönü (for Bosphorus ferries and Tram T5 along the Golden Horn); then crosses the bridge to Galata district and Kabataş (for funicular to Taksim).
- Get inhas ferries from Kadıköy and Üsküdar Asia-side, from further up the Bosphorus, from up the Golden Horn, and from the Princes' Islands.
- Get inYou're likeliest to use the Bosphorus ferries: the Marmaray train is faster but do make this classic crossing at least once during your visit.
- Get inThe main operator is Şehir Hatları, though private boats try to skim off the trade, like pesky private minibuses.
- Get inHaliç Hattı is a ferry that pings back and forth across the Golden Horn, so a round trip is an inexpensive scenic tour.
From Wikivoyage: Istanbul/Historical Peninsula, CC BY-SA. Not yet checked by us; that article was last edited 2026-09.
- 01282 km
- 02361 km
- 03405 km
- 04506 km
- 05534 km
If you know how people move in Byzantium – the stand, the rule, the fare – tell us, and the note gets an entry.
Next door to Byzantium
Byzantium is 3 km from Üsküdar, the nearest large city, whose note carries the wider picture.