Sultanahmet Square: Istanbul Travel Guide (4.7★)

A racetrack you can still trace

The long, narrow shape is the giveaway. Sultanahmet Square runs roughly north to south as a stretched oval of paving and plane trees, and that outline follows the Hippodrome of Constantinople. For centuries chariots raced here and emperors watched from their box. Crowds rioted here too.

The Ottomans called it At Meydanı, the Horse Square, and the old name still turns up on signs and in guidebooks. Today there’s no track and no grandstand. What’s left is a line of ancient monuments standing where the central barrier, the spina, once divided the course.

This is one of the most visited public spaces in Turkey, and it’s always busy. Walking its length slowly, and knowing what you’re looking at, is how you get the most from it.

Three monuments down the spine

Walk from the north end towards the south and you pass the square’s main pieces in order:

• The German Fountain: an octagonal, domed fountain house given by Kaiser Wilhelm II to mark his 1898 visit. Look up inside the dome for the gold mosaic work.
• The Obelisk of Theodosius: pink Aswan granite carved for Pharaoh Thutmose III and first raised at Karnak. It was shipped to Constantinople and set up here in 390 AD. The hieroglyphs are still sharp.
• The Serpent Column: a twisted bronze stump made from three intertwined snakes. It was cast to honour the Greek victory over Persia at Plataea in 479 BC and brought from Delphi by Constantine. The snake heads are gone.
• The Walled Obelisk: a rough stack of stone blocks, restored in the 10th century by Constantine VII. It was once sheathed in gilded bronze plates, which were stripped off during the Fourth Crusade in 1204.

Taken together, you’re looking at around two thousand years of objects in the space of a short stroll.

Why the obelisk stands in a pit

Look at the base of the Egyptian obelisk and the Serpent Column. Both sit in railed hollows several metres below the paving. That drop is the Hippodrome’s real ground level. Centuries of rebuilding and debris raised the city around it.

Lean over the railing at the obelisk and study the marble pedestal. Its reliefs show Theodosius and his court in the imperial box, watching the races and receiving tribute. The lowest panel shows how the obelisk itself was hauled upright.

Few people stop long enough to read it. Once you know the pedestal marks the old track surface, you’ll see the whole square differently.

The buildings that frame it

The square is the hinge of Istanbul’s historic peninsula. Four major sights sit within a few minutes’ walk:

• The Blue Mosque (Sultan Ahmed Mosque) lines the eastern side. Its six minarets rise just behind the trees.
• The Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts fills the İbrahim Pasha Palace along the western edge. Its carpet collection is one of the best anywhere.
• Hagia Sophia faces the Blue Mosque across Sultanahmet Park, a short walk north past the fountain.
• The Basilica Cistern is just northwest, across the tram line.

Because so much sits this close together, most visitors pass through the square several times in a day without planning to.

Getting there on the T1

The T1 tram (Kabataş–Bağcılar) is the easiest route. Get off at Sultanahmet, walk south past the park, and the German Fountain is in front of you. From Eminönü or the Galata Bridge side, the ride takes only a few stops.

Driving into the old city makes little sense. The streets are narrow and parking is scarce. If you’re staying in Sultanahmet itself, you’ll almost certainly walk. The square is also the easiest landmark for meeting a walking tour, so plan to arrive by tram and leave on foot.

Moving around the prayer clock

The square keeps time by the call to prayer from the Blue Mosque’s minarets, and so should you. Five times a day the mosque closes to sightseers for prayers, and a queue builds at the visitor entrance. Check the day’s prayer times before you cross over. Timing your visit between them spares you a long wait on the paving.

A few habits make the square easier:

• Dress for the mosque before you arrive. Cover shoulders and knees. Women need a headscarf, and loaner wraps are offered at the entrance, but bringing your own is quicker.
• Expect friendly approaches. Men offering directions, a guided tour or a “quick look” at a carpet shop are part of the square. A polite “hayır, teşekkürler” (no, thank you) and walking on is normal and not rude.
• Snack from the carts. Red simit carts and vendors selling roasted chestnuts or corn are a fixture around the edges. Buying from them is a very Istanbul way to fill a gap between sights.
• Sit on the benches. Locals use the square as a thoroughfare and a place to rest. Taking a bench under the plane trees for ten minutes is exactly what it’s for.

When the square is at its best

There’s no gate and no ticket office, so you choose your own hours. Early morning is calmer: the stone is empty, the obelisk’s hieroglyphs catch the low light, and the tour coaches haven’t arrived. As a rule the mid-morning surge towards Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque fills this corridor, so going before it pays off.

Evening is the other good window. Once the day groups leave, families come out and the mosque is lit against the sky. In April, the tulip beds in neighbouring Sultanahmet Park are planted for the city’s tulip season.

During Ramadan, the square traditionally hosts evening iftar gatherings and food stalls, and it gets much busier after sunset. Allow 30 to 45 minutes for the square on its own, longer if you stop to read every monument. Nearly everyone combines it with the buildings around it, so budget half a day for the whole cluster.