# From the Grand Bazaar to Süleymaniye: A Walking Route

> A short, scenic walk from the Grand Bazaar up to Süleymaniye: the streets to take, what you pass, and a terrace with a view waiting at the top.

The walk **from the Grand Bazaar to Süleymaniye** takes about fifteen to twenty minutes, mostly uphill, through some of the oldest working streets on Istanbul’s historic peninsula. You leave the covered halls of the *Kapalıçarşı* (the Grand Bazaar) by its northern edge, climb through the booksellers and the old university quarter, and come out at the Süleymaniye Mosque on the ridge above the Golden Horn. It is a short route, but a rich one: the noise of the bazaar gives way to quiet lanes, and the reward at the top is one of the finest views in the city. This guide covers the streets to take, what you pass, and where to rest when you arrive.

## Where do you start, and which way do you go?

Start at the northern edge of the Grand Bazaar. Leave through one of the gates on the bazaar’s north side and head uphill, away from the crowds flowing toward Sultanahmet. The general direction is north and west, toward the great dome you can often glimpse above the rooftops.

You do not need a precise turn-by-turn route. Keep climbing and aim for the minarets of the Süleymaniye Mosque, which act as a landmark for most of the walk. The lanes are short and the hill is gentle but steady. Within a couple of minutes the press of the bazaar thins, the shops change from carpets and lamps to paper, books, and printing supplies, and you are into the quieter heart of the peninsula.

## What do you pass on the way up?

The walk threads through the *Sahaflar Çarşısı* (the old booksellers’ market) and the university quarter, where the texture of the streets shifts with every block. This is the stretch that makes the route worth doing on foot rather than skipping straight to the mosque.

- **The booksellers’ market.** A small, shaded courtyard of bookshops just outside the bazaar, selling everything from textbooks to old prints. A calm first pause after the bustle.
- **The printing and paper streets.** The lanes here have sold paper and books for generations, and the shopfronts still show it.
- **The old university quarter.** Students cross between the buildings, and the pace is local and unhurried.
- **Ottoman fountains and small mosques.** The climb is dotted with centuries-old fountains and tiny neighbourhood mosques tucked between the houses.
- **Sudden views.** As you near the ridge, the side streets begin to open onto glimpses of the Golden Horn below.

## How long does it take, and how hard is it?

Fifteen to twenty minutes at an easy pace, longer if you stop, and the only real effort is the gradient. The hill is steady rather than steep, but it is a climb, so take it slowly in summer heat and carry water.

The streets are cobbled in places and can be uneven, so comfortable shoes help. There is shade for much of the way, but the last stretch up to the mosque can be exposed. None of it is difficult, and the slow gradient is part of the pleasure: you feel the old city rising around you as you go, the bazaar falling away behind and the mosque growing ahead.

## What is waiting at the top?

The Süleymaniye Mosque and its terrace, with the great view over the Golden Horn opening out beyond. After the enclosed bazaar and the climbing lanes, the sudden openness of the ridge is the payoff for the walk.

Take time in the mosque courtyard and the tomb garden behind it, then walk to the seaward terrace where the Golden Horn, the bridges, and the hills of the new city lay out below you. The neighbourhood up here is residential and calm, made for slowing down after the bazaar. There is far more to the quarter than the mosque alone, as the guide to [things to do in Süleymaniye](/en/blog/suleymaniye-things-to-do/) sets out, and the wider [guide to Süleymaniye](/en/blog/suleymaniye-guide/) covers the lay of the neighbourhood.

## Where should you rest when you arrive?

On the ridge, with a table and the water in view. After the climb, the right move is to sit, and Süleymaniye is one of the best places on the peninsula to do it, whether over morning tea or a longer meal.

If you have timed the walk for the morning, the ridge rewards a long, slow breakfast with the city laid out below, the kind the guide to the [best Turkish breakfast on the historic peninsula](/en/blog/best-peninsula-breakfast/) describes. Later in the day, the same terraces shift to *çay* (Turkish tea), *nargile* (the Turkish water pipe), and dinner as the light fades over the Golden Horn.

One place to land is **Moss Lounge the Bosphorus**, on Fetva Yokuşu at the top of the climb, with a terrace that holds the Süleymaniye Mosque on one side and the water on the other. Adem Özen, the host, opened it in 2019 and runs it as a home rather than a restaurant. After the walk up from the bazaar, it is a good place to put your feet up over a long breakfast or stay into the evening as the old city lights come on.