Türkmenbaşı Natural Park
There are many similarities between Turkmenbasi Park and the nearby Belgrade Forest, both of which are good spots for relaxation and recreation away from city life. It is especially popular for walking and picnicking and its cool shady areas busy during weekends. The road leading to the park is filled with food sellers.
Polonezköy
Location: Polenezkoy is in the Beykoz district of Istanbul, in the Marmara Region.
Transportation: There is no public transport to the village of Polonezkoy, but private vehicles can access the area from the centre of Istanbul towards the coast, on the Asian side.
Göknarlik Nature Reserve
Location: The park is 2km outside Tokat, a small village in the Beykoz district of Istanbul, northeast of the city.
Transportation: There is public transport available from Istanbul.
Highlights: The area has a unique ecosystem which is in danger of vanishing, and has the only fir tree grove growing naturally in Istanbul. Other tree species include chestnut, lime, horn-beam and hazelnut.
Faith Tourism
Eyup Sultan Mosque: It is the first mosque constructed in Istanbul after conquer. It is constructed on 1458 by Fatih Sultan Mehmet, together with mausoleum. Today’s mosque is the mosque constructed under supervision of Huseyin Efendi with demolishing the former mosque until to its base on 1800.
Eyup Sultan Mausoleum: Halit Bin Zeyd (Hz. Eyup) the standard bearer of the Prophet Mohammed, and accepted the Islam first while he came to Mecca, is lying in the mausoleum, constructed on 1458. Eyup, during the seventh Arabic siege of the Istanbul, had participated to the war in the army leaded by one of the Emevi rulers Ebu Sufyan and martyred. Eyup’s cemetery outside the ramparts is found by the teacher of Fatih, Aksemsettin after the conquer of Istanbul. Fatih, had constructed a mausoleum on this cemetery and a mosque near to it.
Religious Monuments
Sultanahmet Mosque, Suleymaniye Mosque, Rustem Pasa Mosque, Fatih Mosque, Eyup Mosque, Yeni Mosque, Sokullu Mehmet Pasa Mosque and Mihrimah Sultan Mosque are amongst the most famous places of interest.
There are many churches and monasteries active within the city, some of which have been turned into mosques. Studios Monastery Church, Sergios-Bakhos Church, Hagia Eirene Church, Pantakrator Monastery Church, Vefa Church (Hagios Theoderos), Nyrelaion Monastery Church, Eglise D’hagia Thekla Monastery, Eski Imaret Mosque (Pantepoptes Monastery Church), Kalenderhane Mosque (Akataleotos Monastery), Fenari Isa Mosque (Lios Monastery Church) and Fethiye Mosque (Pammakaristos Monastery Church) are the best-known ones.