What's on in Istanbul, Turkey through the year

Quiet — the editor's quiet month, Semester (winter) break in Turkey

Nothing new starts in January.

Still on: Hamsi season (1 Nov – 28 Feb (usually)), Lodos and poyraz storm season (15 Nov – 15 Mar (usually))

Quiet — the editor's quiet month, Ramadan

• Holiday

  Ramadan

  17 Feb – 19 MarCrowded

  Sultanahmet fills at sunset for iftar and the mosque courtyards are laid with tables. Museums keep normal hours; the atmosphere is the reason to come, not an obstacle. Source ↗

Still on: Hamsi season (1 Nov – 28 Feb (usually)), Lodos and poyraz storm season (15 Nov – 15 Mar (usually))

Busy — between the peaks, Ramadan

• Holiday

  Ramazan Bayrami

  19–21 MarRamadan & EidCrowdedClosures

  Three public holidays that empty the offices and fill the coach stations. The historic peninsula gets busier, not quieter, because the rest of Turkey comes to it. Source ↗

Still on: Ramadan (17 Feb – 19 Mar), Lodos and poyraz storm season (15 Nov – 15 Mar (usually))

Shoulder season — between the peaks, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

• Festival

  Tulip Festival

  1–30 AprWildflowers & blooms

  The municipality plants millions of bulbs across Emirgan, Gulhane and the Asian-side parks. The flower was Ottoman long before it was Dutch, and the city is not shy about saying so. Source ↗

Busy — between the peaks, Kurban Bayrami

• Holiday

  Kurban Bayrami

  27–30 MayRamadan & EidClosuresCrowded

  The longer of the two religious holidays. Residents leave for the coast, shops shut for several days and the ferries to the islands run full. Source ↗

• Festival

  Istanbul Music Festival

  30 May – 30 Jun · usuallyMajor festival

  Classical concerts through June in Hagia Eirene inside the Topkapi walls and in churches and cisterns around the old city, run by the foundation behind the jazz and film festivals. Tickets are cheap by European standards. Source ↗

Peak crowds — the editor's peak month, Summer holidays in Turkey

Nothing new starts in June.

Still on: Kurban Bayrami (27–30 May), Istanbul Music Festival (30 May – 30 Jun (usually))

Peak crowds — the editor's peak month, Summer holidays in Turkey

• Season

  Sea warm enough to swim

  15 Jul – 30 Sep · usually

  The Marmara and the Black Sea beaches hold their heat into late September, which is when the islands and the Sile coast are worth the trip out.

• Festival

  Bosphorus cross-continental swim

  15 Jul – 31 Aug · usuallyMajor festivalClosures

  One morning in high summer the strait is closed to all shipping and a few thousand swimmers cross from Kanlica down to Kurucesme. Watching from the Asian shore is free; entry places go the day they open. Source ↗

Peak crowds — the editor's peak month, Victory Day

• Holiday

  Victory Day

  30 AugNational holidayClosures

  A public holiday on 30 August, with a parade and the bridges lit. It lands at the end of the school holidays, so the coach stations and the domestic flights out of the city are full for several days around it. Source ↗

Still on: Sea warm enough to swim (15 Jul – 30 Sep (usually)), Bosphorus cross-continental swim (15 Jul – 31 Aug (usually))

Busy — between the peaks, Summer holidays in Turkey

Nothing new starts in September.

Still on: Sea warm enough to swim (15 Jul – 30 Sep (usually))

Busy — between the peaks, Republic Day

• Holiday

  Republic Day

  28–29 OctNational holidayCrowdedClosures

  The holiday starts at one o'clock on 28 October. Streets close for parades and there are fireworks over the Bosphorus, and moving across the city those two days is hopeless. Source ↗

Quiet — the editor's quiet month, Istanbul Marathon

• Nature

  Hamsi season

  1 Nov – 28 Feb · usuallyForaging season

  The Black Sea anchovy run reaches the city and the small fish turn up grilled and fried at every quayside counter. It is the one thing Istanbul cooks by the calendar. Source ↗

• Festival

  Istanbul Marathon

  1–15 Nov · usuallyMajor festivalClosuresCrowded

  The only marathon that crosses between two continents: the course runs over the Bosphorus bridge, shut to traffic from the night before. Most of the field is there for the eight-kilometre walk over it. Source ↗

• Season

  Lodos and poyraz storm season

  15 Nov – 15 Mar · usuallyWind seasonClosuresRisk

  The two winter winds take turns, and when either blows hard the Bosphorus ferries and the island boats are cancelled at short notice. Have a bridge route in reserve. Source ↗

Quiet — the editor's quiet month, school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in December.

Still on: Hamsi season (1 Nov – 28 Feb (usually)), Lodos and poyraz storm season (15 Nov – 15 Mar (usually))