Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Taxi
İstanbul is full of yellow taxis. Some drivers are lunatics, others are con artists; most are
neither. If you're caught with the first category and you're about to go into meltdown, say
'
yavaş!'
(careful/slow down!). Drivers in the second of these categories - the con artists -
tend to prey on tourists. All taxis have digital meters and must run them, but some of these
drivers ask for a flat fare, or pretend the meter doesn't work so they can gouge you at the
end of the trip. The best way to counter this is to tell them no meter, no ride.
Taxi fares are very reasonable, and rates are the same during both day and night. It costs
around 15 to travel between Beyoğlu and Sultanahmet.
Few taxis have seatbelts. If you catch a taxi over either of the Bosphorus Bridges, it is
your responsibility to cover the toll. The driver will add this to your fare.
Metro
An efficient metro service connects Aksaray with the airport, stopping at 15 stations, in-
cluding the
otogar
, along the way. Trains leave every 10 minutes or so from 5.40am to
1.40am. There are plans to extend the service to Yenikapı. Tickets cost 2 and İstan-
bulkarts can be used.
Another line connects Şişhane, near Tünel Meydanı in Beyoğlu, and Hacıosman, north-
east of Taksim. Unfortunately, it's not possible to travel between the two points in one trip
- one metro runs between Şişhane and Taksim Meydanı; another runs between Taksim
and Hacıosman, stopping at nine stations along the way. The full trip takes around one
hour. Services run every five minutes or so from 6.15am to midnight. Tickets cost 2 and
İstanbulkarts can be used.
Works are currently underway to extend the Taksim-Şişhane route over the Golden
Horn via a new metro bridge and under the Old City to Yenikapı via stops at Unkapanı
and Şehzadebaşı. It will then connect with the metro to Aksaray and with a transport tun-
nel being built under the Bosphorus as part of the Marmaray project. This tunnel will in-
clude a metro connection between Yenikapı, Sirkeci, Üsküdar and Sögütlüçesme. Other
works underway include construction of a 16-stop metro line running between Kadıköy
and Kartal on the Asian side of town.
