Bosphorus Dinner Cruise with Turkish Show and Window Table Option

Kabataş pier and the departure

The cruise leaves from Kabataş, the busy ferry pier on the European shore at the foot of the hill below Taksim, five minutes on foot from the gates of Dolmabahçe Palace. It is one of the easiest places in Istanbul to reach in the evening: the T1 tram from Sultanahmet, Eminönü and Karaköy ends here, and the F1 funicular drops down from Taksim Square in two minutes. Our representative welcomes you at the pier and shows you to your table before the 20:45 departure.

If you choose a pickup option, an air-conditioned vehicle collects you from hotels in Sultanahmet, Fatih, Taksim and nearby districts and brings you back after the cruise, which makes the evening about 5 hours door to door. Drop-off at the end of the cruise is at Kabataş or, for those staying in the Old City, at Sirkeci, so both sides of the Golden Horn are covered.

The night route: Dolmabahçe, Çırağan and Ortaköy

The boat heads up the European shore first, and within minutes the 600-metre marble façade of Dolmabahçe Palace slides past, lit from below, with its clock tower and the domed palace mosque. Then come Çırağan Palace with its waterfront colonnade and, under the cables of the 15 July Martyrs Bridge, the small baroque Ortaköy Mosque floodlit on its quay, the image most guests photograph first. A Bosphorus dinner cruise at night shows these buildings the way they were meant to be seen, from the water.

The route continues past the wooden yalı mansions to Rumeli Fortress, whose towers of 1452 are lit on the hillside, and as far as the Fatih Sultan Mehmet Bridge, where the boat turns. Dinner is served during this outward leg, so you can watch the shore from your seat; a window-side private table keeps the view in front of you all evening.

The Asian shore: Beylerbeyi Palace and Maiden's Tower

On the way back the boat follows the Asian shore, passing Beylerbeyi Palace, the white summer palace of 1865 beside the first bridge, and the lights of Üsküdar before reaching Maiden's Tower, the small lighthouse tower on its islet off Salacak, lit against the dark water. Behind it rise the floodlit silhouettes of Topkapi Palace, Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque on the Old City peninsula, the final panorama before the return to Kabataş.

This is usually when the show is in full swing, so guests move between the deck, the windows and the stage. The boat is air-conditioned and fully indoor seating is available, which matters from November to March when the Bosphorus wind is cold; in summer the open sections are the place to be. The whole circuit takes about three hours, with the boat back at the pier around 23:45.

The dinner

Dinner is a full Turkish meal, all of it halal, served at your table. It starts with a selection of cold appetizers, the meze of Turkish tables: yoghurt and herb dips, stuffed vine leaves, salads and pickles, followed by a warm starter of crisp cheese rolls, sigara böreği. For the main course you choose between grilled fish with rocket and lemon, grilled chicken with rice and potatoes, grilled meatballs with rice and potatoes, or falafel for vegetarians, and the evening ends with Turkish coffee and tea.

Soft drinks are unlimited throughout the cruise, and water, tea and coffee are always on the table. Children aged 7 to 12 have their own rate and infants up to 6 join free, so the dinner cruise works well for families. Tell us when you book if anyone has allergies or a dietary requirement and we pass it to the kitchen before the night.

The Turkish night show

After the main course the lights dim for the live programme. It opens with a whirling dervish, the slow, turning ceremony of the Mevlevi tradition of Konya performed in a white robe and tall felt hat, followed by a belly-dance group, then folk dances from different regions of Turkey: the lively Romani dance of Thrace, the fast footwork of the Caucasus and dances from the Black Sea and Anatolia, with a rhythm show on drums in between.

The programme closes with a DJ playing international hits and the dance floor open to everyone, whatever table you booked. A private front-of-stage table puts you at the edge of the stage for the closest view and is popular with families and birthday groups; the combined window-side front-of-stage table, when available, gives both the show and the Bosphorus without choosing. Private tables are limited on each sailing, so our Istanbul team recommends booking them a few days ahead.