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Transportation

  • TO CITY
    Istanbul is accessible by air, sea, rail and road. Among these, air transport is perhaps the most significant in view of overall congress requirements, but other modes of transport may be more convenient for countries in the region.
  • BY AIR
    Istanbul is readily accessible from all parts of the world, and served by more than 50 international airlines. There are direct flights to Turkey from 76 different cities around the world. There are around 700 flights to Istanbul per week.
  • INTERNATIONAL AIRPORTS
    Name of international Airports:
    (1) Istanbul Ataturk Airport
    (2) Istanbul Sahiba Gokcen Airport 

    Distance from City Centre (Kilometres and time):
    (1) - 20 km - 30 minutes (2) - 30 km - 40 minutes 
    Cost of travel to city centre:
    Airport shuttle cost: 9 Euros 
    Taxi: 20 - 25 euros 
    Scheduled International Destinations to and from airport:
    Turkish Airlines has direct flights to Istanbul from 131 cities in the world. There are about 700 international flights scheduled for Istanbul every week. In addition to Turkish Airlines flights, there are also various private airline companies which fly to destinations in Europe.
From Route 
Direct/via		 Time
Paris Direct 3.5
Frankfurt Direct 3
Stockholm Direct 3.5
Rome Direct 2
London Direct 4
Amsterdam Direct 3
Madrid Direct 4
New York Direct 10
San Francisco Via NYC or European City 18
  • TRANSPORTATION WITHIN CITY 
    A variety of public transportation modes such as metro, light railway, trams, buses and taxis make travelling in the city easy and convenient. Ticket system of public transportation called Akbil is widely used in most of the public transportation vehicles.

    CITY BUSES
    There are numerous private and state-owned city buses in Istanbul. Bus and tram tickets are about 0.75 EURO each, are usually available near the main stops from a kiosk.

    DOLMUS OR MINIBUS
    A dolmus is a large car or a minibus, which is a kind of taxi shared by other passengers. They are a good option for short trips, and depart from dolmus terminals. Payment is in cash.

    TAXIS 
    Taxis are obliged to drive on the meter. Only in case you want an excursion, a mutually fixed price can be agreed upon before you depart. Yellow taxis line up in front of ferry terminals, stations, major hotels and can be hailed almost anywhere in the street.

    TRAM - LIGHT RAIL TRANSPORT SYSTEM
    Istanbul's main tramline runs from Eminonu/ Sirkeci station via Aksaray to Zeytinburnu, just outside the Southwest city walls. Another line runs from Aksaray to the Esenler bus terminal (international and intercity connections) and again from Aksaray to the airport.

    UNDERGROUND
    The first phase of the Istanbul Metro, which spans the heavily congested Taksim - Levent route was opened in October 2000. The underground railway line runs from Taksim Square to Levent, about 8 kilometers North-East of Taksim. Construction has started to extend this Metro line from Levent to Maslak and from Taksim to Yenikapı.

    FERRIES 
    Passenger ferries are by far the most pleasant way to travel in Istanbul. They travel to many destinations of Istanbul. The primary routes run every twenty minutes between 07:00 and 23:00. Fast ferries serve a total of 30 destinations in and around Istanbul with a fleet of 26 ships, including vessels which are able to accomodate more than 400 passengers.