I am thinking about adding Istanbul to my itinerary and will be going there after some time in the Greek isles. I will have already spent time with ruins in Rome and Greece so I am not sure if I will need to see more ruins in Turkey. I would like opinions on if I should make an effort to go anywhere other than Istanbul. And for that matter with limited time, is Istanbul worth the effort? My interest in seeing it was for the middle eastern culture and beautiful buildings. I would assume it has a very different feel than the rest of Europe. Comments?

Stopped off in Istanbul on our way to & from Japan. Don't miss the Topkapi palace. This featured in a movie of the same name which starred Peter Ustinov. It was to do with the Emerald hilted dagger that is on display there. You can also view 'bits' of the Prophet Mohammed ( Teeth, Whiskers ). Casts of his footprints etc. They also have the right hand of John the Baptist & the 'baton' ( note not staff ) of Moses.<BR>Very interesting.

Also, Hagia Sophia.Once a church, now a mosque, ery interesting...Istanbul is very different than the rest of Europe. Great blend of cultures.<BR><BR>M.

Istanbul was wonderful!! Completely different than all of the other Christian based cities in Europe. I highly recommend a few days there!

If you have the time, by all means I recommend you go to Istanbul. If you tire quickly of ruins like I do, forget them, as Istanbul has a lot of living life to see that is more exciting than a bunch of ancient rocks sprawled around that were once buildings. <BR><BR>Do see the main tourist sites others have mentioined. Take a ferry to Uskidar (sp?) the Asian side of Istanbul which was very intersting to people watch.<BR><BR>BUT most of all, bring your appetite!!! Turkish food is incredibly delicious and comes in such a variety of tastes and presentations. You'll be amazed.<BR>Half the fun is watching others diners and waiters. <BR>The people were quite friendly too. <BR><BR>I definitely plan to go back for another visit one day.<BR><BR>Ron<BR>

I agree with all that has been said above and yet I also have to say that Istanbul was much different than I had expected. I was expecting gritty, really gritty and found instead a city with wide green boulevards and often a feel that was distinctly european, almost parisian. Even the big bazaar/market was not as gritty as I was expecting. I liked the spice market better--more exotic. It is a beautiful city and a very interesting place to go. For sure you should. We took a trip outside Istanbul to Kusadasi to see the ruins of Ephasus. They were attractive (and pretty well preserved as ruins go) and there is a beautiful hotel there--Kismet, but the town itself felt like Acapulco. I'd say just stay in Istanbul, plenty to keep you interested.

Thanks for all your advice, I will keep it in my itinerary.