Istanbul visitor guide

Getting online at Istanbul Airport

Istanbul Airport's arriving passenger guide says unlimited free internet is available throughout the airport. There are two ways to sign in once you select the iGA WiFi network. With 'Login with mobile', you enter a phone number on the portal and type in the password sent to it by SMS. With 'Login with access code', you scan your passport or identity card at a kiosk in the terminal to receive an access code, then enter that code on the portal.

The same guide lists information desks that offer communication through translation devices in 40 languages and 88 dialects. Its digital options include a live call with a representative, available around the clock in Turkish, English and Sign Language, and an airport mobile app. The call centre is +90 444 1 442, available 24/7 by telephone and WhatsApp. For leaving the airport, the guide says to exit through gate 9 or 13 and follow the red signs to the metro station.

For Sabiha Gökçen, the airport has a Turkish-language page on wireless internet access. The text we could read says to connect to the Free Wi-Fi network for free internet service, and gives no sign-in rules or limits. The Istanbul Airport pages we read did not describe SIM counters or eSIM sales, so we are not listing any.

Metro fares and the Istanbulkart

Metro Istanbul operates the city's metro, tram, funicular and cable-car lines, and its fare page is in Turkish. The page has three tabs: Anonim Kart İstanbulkart (anonymous card), Mavi İstanbulkart and Elektronik İstanbulkart. At the time of checking, the anonymous-card tab listed 46,20 ₺ (46.20 Turkish lira) for a full fare ('Tam'), 22,55 ₺ for a student card, 41,58 ₺ for a student who has passed age 30 and 33,08 ₺ for 'Sosyal'. The page does not say what these figures cover, such as one ride, one distance band or one boarding, so confirm at the station gate or ticket machine. The Elektronik tab lists single-use electronic ticket cards by number of trips: 65 ₺ for a card good for one trip, 120 ₺ for two and 530 ₺ for ten. The Mavi tab lists prices by trip count and does not explain what the card is.

Metro Istanbul's travel-cards page says free and discounted cards are issued by IETT under rules set by the national Ministry of Family and Social Services and the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality. People entitled to discounted or free travel tap their own named card at the gate, and holders must show valid identification if station or security staff ask. The page does not say whether visitors can qualify. We did not read an official page on where visitors buy or top up a card, so we do not describe it.

Museum tickets from the state platform

The Ministry of Culture and Tourism runs muze.gov.tr, which sells online tickets for state museums and sites across Turkey. Its e-ticket list includes Istanbul entries such as Galata Tower, Rumeli Fortress Museum, the Istanbul Archaeological Museums, the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts and the Galata Mevlevi Lodge Museum. The site also has a Museum Pass section and a night-museum programme.

The Istanbul Archaeological Museums page gives opening hours of 09:00 to 18:30, with the box office closing at 17:30, lists the museum as open every day and says an audio guide is available. The Museum Pass page lists a mobile Müzekart, MuseumPass Türkiye, İstanbul, Cappadocia, Mediterranean and Aegean e-cards and several Müzekart variants, each with buy or points-of-sale links. It does not state prices or which sites each card includes.

The e-ticket list does not cover every Istanbul site, and we did not read ticket rules for Hagia Sophia or Topkapı Palace, so check those sites directly before travelling. We did not find queue or capacity statements on the pages we read.

Climate by month

The Turkish State Meteorological Service publishes official statistics for Istanbul covering 1950 to 2025, using stations at Kadıköy, Florya and Sarıyer. Average temperature is 6.8°C in January and 24.7°C in July and August. The average daily high reaches 29.7°C in July and August, and the average low is 4.2°C in January and February.

Rain is heaviest in winter. The service lists 99.2 mm in December, 88.8 mm in January and 22.1 mm in July, the driest month. January averages about 16 rainy days and July about 3. The annual average is 659.4 mm over 114.6 rainy days. The record high is 40.6°C and the record low is -9.0°C.

The UK Foreign Office says the next Ramadan will likely begin between early February and early March 2027 and last 29 or 30 days. During that time it says eating, drinking, smoking or chewing gum in public in the daytime may cause offence, and it advises following local dress codes and checking the opening hours of shops and restaurants. We did not find an official Turkish page listing other crowd-affecting events.

Emergency numbers and where to ask for help

The Interior Ministry's 112 emergency call centre site presents 112 as the single number for police, gendarmerie, coast guard, fire and forest-fire reports, and the UK Foreign Office says to dial 112 and ask for an ambulance. At Istanbul Airport, the information desks and the round-the-clock call centre on +90 444 1 442 are the places to ask for help.

The Foreign Office says street robbery and pickpocketing are common in the major tourist areas of Istanbul. It warns against strangers who approach you to change money or take you to a restaurant or nightclub, since food and drink offered by strangers could be spiked. It adds that banks and money exchanges may not accept 50 or 100 US dollar bills because of counterfeits, that illegally produced spirits containing methanol have caused deaths in Turkey, and that you should find a registered taxi, note its registration number and ensure the fare is metered.

It also says regular demonstrations take place in Istanbul, may become violent, and should be avoided, leaving the area if one develops.

Official sites you will use in Istanbul

Each link goes to the operator, authority or tourist board itself, not to a reseller. Check the page for the current price, timetable or rule before you rely on it.