Istanbul was part of the trip my husband and I took in 2012 that included Italy and Egypt. We spent just 3 nights in Istanbul, but had such an amazing time. We had our Turkish friends with us since they were visiting their family at the time. They gave us an amazing express tour of the city. While I did enjoy all of the history and sites, my favorite moments were relaxing at a restaurant or cafe by the water, enjoying the views. We arrived in Istanbul from Cairo at night and would start the sight-seeing in the morning.

We started our day with some traditional Turkish breakfast at a cafe – always delicious, and headed to the Sapphire Tower. The Sapphire building is currently the 5th tallest building in Istanbul at 856 ft. high (in 2012 it was the tallest). We went to the observation deck, which had amazing views of the city. There’s also a restaurant there offering traditional Turkish food with an incredible view. We also did the 4D Skyride, which was fun to do and I think kids would definitely enjoy it. Tickets for the observation deck are 600 Turkish Lira ($15) or you can get a combo ticket for 900 Turkish Lira ($22) which includes the observation deck and Skyride. I recommend doing both as the views on the deck are amazing and it’s not too much more to include the Skyride.

After we finished at the Sapphire building, we headed to Taksim Square (about an 11-minute drive). The square is one of the main tourist attractions and has lots of restaurants and shops. There are many vendors selling roasted chestnuts, called “Kestane” in Turkish and you can smell them as you’re walking around the square and Istiklal Street. We stopped for Islak burgers or, “wet burgers”, which my husband went crazy for, but I wasn’t too impressed. It’s a burger soaked in tomato sauce (hence the name) and I’m not a huge fan of lots of tomato sauce. Lots of other people I know love it as well! Afterwards we headed to Comlek for dinner. There we had fasulye, which is a white bean stew and an authentic Turkish dish. It was delicious. After we went to Balcoon Lounge for tea while looking out at the Bosphoous. That was one of my favorite nights.

On our second day, we toured the sites in Fatih, a district in Istanbul that has many tourist attractions like Hagia Sophia, The Blue Mosque, Grand Bazaar, and the Basilica Cistern. We toured all but Hagia Sophia. The historical Blue Mosque was so beautiful with its architecture and design. Since it’s a mosque, it’s free to enter, but tickets are needed for a guided tour. It is closed during prayer times to non-worshippers so, be sure to check the site here before going and for tour tickets. After that we went to the Grand Bazaar to find souvenirs for everyone back home. There were so many shops and options. We also stopped for some macun – a twisted Turkish candy. It was interesting. Lastly, the Basilica Cistern – an impressive ancient underground water reservoir from the Byzantine era that contains 336 columns. Tickets for the Cistern are around $70 per person (kids under 6 are free). After touring everything, we went for dinner at an amazing restaurant along the water – Kasibeyaz. The atmosphere and service was amazing. Everything we ordered was delicious, especially the kunafa. We ate it all before I got a picture!

Our last morning before our flight, we grabbed some breakfast a cafe near Dolmabahce Palace before taking the tour. As with everything else we had eaten on our trip, it was enjoyable with a view. We then took an express tour of the palace, which was built between 1843 and 1856 and is largest palace in Turkey with close to 300 rooms. The interior is absolutely amazing, as were the gardens outside. Tickets are around $55 for adults (6 and under are free). Of course, there are many combo ticket options that would be worth it if seeing multiple attractions. If possible, make sure to tour it. After our tour and walking around the exterior, it was time to head to the airport. Three nights definitely didn’t feel like enough and I hope to go back sometime with the kids!

Next up – England