Princes' Islands

Worth seeing in and around Princes' Islands

6 places within 25 km that the world writes about, in the order of how widely: the ones a visitor has heard of first, then the ones only a local would name.

1. 01
   Büyükada Greek Orthodox Orphanage

   The Prinkipo Greek Orphanage is a historic 20,000-square-meter wooden building on Büyükada, one of the nine Princes' Islands off the coast of Istanbul, Turkey, in the Sea of Marmara. It is considered the largest wooden building in Europe and second largest in the world.

   2.1 km · historical building in Büyükada, Adalar, Istanbul · Wikipedia
2. 02
   İsmet İnönü House Museum

   İsmet İnönü House Museum is a house museum in Istanbul, Turkey. The house is in Heybeliada, the second largest island of the Princes' Islands in Istanbul.

   1.4 km · museum in Adalar District · Wikipedia
3. 03
   Hesed Le Avraam Synagogue

   The Hesed Le Avraam Synagogue, also known as the Büyükada Synagogue or the Hesed Beit Avraham Synagogue, is a Jewish congregation and synagogue, located in the Sirkeci area of Büyükada, in the Adalar district of Istanbul, in the Istanbul Province of Turkey. Completed in c. 1920s, the synagogue is open for services only during summer months, like the other synagogues of the Princes' Islands.

   3 km · synagogue in Istanbul, Turkey · Wikipedia
4. 04
   Hüseyin Rahmi Gürpınar Museum

   Hüseyin Rahmi Gürpınar Museum is a historic house museum dedicated to the writer Hüseyin Rahmi Gürpınar in Istanbul, Turkey. The museum is situated on Heybeliada in the Princes' Islands in Istanbul.

   1.3 km · museum in Istanbul · Wikipedia
5. 05
   Burgazada Synagogue

   The Burgazada Synagogue, also known as the Ohel Yaakov Synagogue, is a Jewish congregation and synagogue, located on Burgazada, in the Princes' Islands, off Istanbul, in the Istanbul Province of Turkey. There were few Jewish families in the 1950s in Burgaz.

   3 km · synagogue in Istanbul, Turkey · Wikipedia
6. 06
   Halki Theological School Gardens

   The Halki Theological School Gardens are located in the top of the Hill of Hope in Heybeliada in Turkey. Halki seminary, also known as Halki theological school, was built in 1844 as the lighthouse of Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople.

   1.8 km · garden in Heybeliada · Wikipedia

Ranked by the number of language editions of Wikipedia with an article on each, from Wikidata; the sentences are the openings of those articles, CC BY-SA 4.0.

What Wikivoyage says to see

Saatli Meydan - "Clocktower Square" - is town centre, a block inland from the ferry pier. This area is nondescript, you need to walk a few blocks east or (better still) west to find the 19th century wooden mansions built as summer homes for the wealthy. Mizzi Mansion west at Çankaya Cd 17 was built in brick in Italianate style in 1894. In the 1930s it was a hotel; it's now a private residence, no tours.

1. 01
   Prinkipo Greek Orphanage

   Six-storey wooden building, probably the largest wooden building in Europe, fallen into ruin and fenced off.

2. 02
   Islands Museum

   Describing the islands from prehistoric times to the present day.

3. 03
   Church of Saint George
4. 04
   Halki Seminary on Ümit Tepesi

From Wikivoyage: Princes' Islands, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.

Things to do

Grand Tour (Büyük Tur) means the 15 km circumference of Büyükada. The roads are well paved and scenic, with few gradients or vehicles. Bikes can be hired near the ferry pier. Boat trips start from the mainland city, not here. These are the way to view the outlying islands lacking a ferry service. Beaches are small, and you pay to use them.

From Wikivoyage: Princes' Islands, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.

Where to eat

Büyükada pier and nearby streets have dozens of eating places. Popular choices include Fıçı, Nissi, Ali Baba, Süleyman, Botanik, Konak, Kervan and Ada Saray. Şekercisi Cafe is a coffee and dessert cafe at Özdemir Sk 8, open daily 08:30-21:00. Loc'ada Büyükada, Yılmaz Türk Cd 175 (200 m north of Island Museum),. Pricey restaurant with rooms, you're paying for the view.

1. 01
   Lunapark Restaurant

   Convenient restaurant in the mid-island square.

2. 02
   Eskibağ Teras

   Pleasant place with views from the terrace.

From Wikivoyage: Princes' Islands, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.

Getting to Princes' Islands

Airports

Istanbul Sabiha Gökçen (SAW), 18 km · İstanbul (IST), 55 km · Hasan Polatkan (AOE), 168 km

• Istanbul → Princes' Islands

  22 km · quickest by ferry, 1h 45m · ₺245–473
  GuideToday
• Eskişehir → Princes' Islands

  Train, bus, flight, ferry and road, side by side
  GuideToday
• Edremit → Princes' Islands

  Train, bus, flight, ferry and road, side by side
  GuideToday
• From anywhere

  The planner compares every way there from wherever you are.
  Plan a trip

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 Princes' Islands

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 Princes' Islands. What is above is what we hold from open sources; nothing here pretends to be more.

If you know how people move in Princes' Islands – the stand, the rule, the fare – tell us, and the note gets an entry.