Situated at the heart of Old Istanbul, the Sultanahmet neighborhood is a fascinating hub of the historical timeline. Dramatically located on a peninsula pointing across the Bosphorus Strait to Asia, this area was formerly an administrative pole of the Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman empires, and as such, reflects numerous influences of the cultures once prevalent here.

Whether you feel like walking the ancient city walls, haggling in historic bazaars absorbing the sanctity of mosques, or perhaps watching the sun go down on the Golden Horn or relaxing in a Turkish bath, there’s plenty you can do in Old Istanbul, aptly known as “the city of the world’s desire.”

Flanked by shops, hotels and traditional eateries, this popular district also abounds in historic locations. Over the course of nearly five centuries, the Ottomans had transformed the face of Constantinople (the city’s name predating “Istanbul”) with a vast building scheme that included the construction of towering mosques and ornate palaces. The striking Blue Mosque with its iconic minarets, along with the famed, mosaic-filled 6th-century Hagia Sophia, originally a Christian church, along with the Egyptian Obelisk of Theodosius and the nearby 4th-century Stone of Million pillar ruin are just some of the remnants of the bygone era.