The largest and oldest covered markets in the world Grand Bazaar (Kapali Çarşı), 61 covered streets and over 4,000 shops which attract between 350,000 and 600,000 visitors daily‘ should be any dedicated shopper’s first port of call in Istanbul. Crammed in among chaotic covered streets and alleys, its thousands of stalls hold all manner of items, such as carpets and kilims, leather, suede and denim clothes and accessories, ceramic tiles, bowls and vases, hand-beaten copper and brass lamps, coffee-grinders and samovars, gold and silver jewellery (beware imitations) and much more.
Much of the current prosperity comes from gold (of which nearly 100 tons is sold in the Grand Bazaar each year), coachloads of ‘black bag’ shoppers.(so called because of their habit of filling bin sacks with cheap clothing) and tourism. But, among t he sea of mantlepiece trinkets, nasty leather jackets, no-label jeans and hippie-wear, there • ire attractive quality goods to be had. To take time out I rom the constant hard sell, head for the Şark Kahvesi, a fine old-style coffee house on the prominent Yağlıkçılar Caddesi.
A paradise for some, the crowds and hawkers, and indeed the sheer size of the bazaar, can render the experience quite nightmarish for others. As a result, some shoppers prefer the smaller Spice Bazaar (Mısır Çarşısı) in Eminönü. As well as offering the typical souvenirs found in its larger cousin, the Spice Bazaar (Egyptian Bazaar) also sells vast quantities of herbs and spices, as well as delicious candies and mixed nuts. It’s also a good place to buy a nargile (water pipe) and accompanying fruit-flavoured molasses.
Although the shops are now mainly geared towards tourists, the Grand Bazaar still retains a great deal of its oriental flavour in the blackened corners and arched courtyards of its bans (merchants’ inns), as well as in the workshops and stalls of traditional blacksmiths and bronzesmiths, jewellers and fabric merchants, miniature painters and antiques dealers.
Istanbul was always one of the world’s most important trading centres, with extensive open markets in Byzantine times. The Ottomans ushered in a new economic era, with the city at the) centre of an empire that stretched from the Arabian deserts almost to the European Alps. In 1461 Mehmet the Conqueror ordered the construction of a bedesten, a great lock-up with thick stone walls, massive iron gates and space for several dozen shops. This survives in modified form as the Old Bedesten (If Bedesten), at the very heart of the bazaar. It remains a place where the most precious items are sold, including the best old silver and antiques. The Sandal Bedesten was added later, named after a fine Bursan silk and filled with textile traders. It now hosts a carpet auction at 1pm every Wednesday, well worth attending as an audience spectacle.
It is as easy to lose track of time in this covered labyrinth as it is to lose oneself in its hectic, meandering alleyways. Don’t be afraid to put the map away here, as part of the fun is getting lost, although making your way through the crowds amid the persistent cajoling of shopkeepers can certainly take its toll.
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The Grand Bazaar is one of the site-seeing spot in our tour. You can totally see & feel the history & culture of this place as soon as you walk in. There are thousands of shops in the Grand Bazaar, it’ll take a day to walk through all the shops.
Even having seen bazaars in Saudi and Egypt, we werent prepared for how big this one is. The normal range (to us) of fabric, clothes, shoes, leather goods, food stuffs and jewellery is there, and so much more – tools, marine navigation equipment, electronics, watches, cameras, you name it, its there.
The grand bazaar is very much your typical bazaar experience but even if you're not keen on being harassed by traders and salesmen it's worth visiting just to experience it. If you want to shop you could probably spend the whole day here!
A truly amazing shopping experience for shopping buffs. The sheer size is mind bugling. You can find everything in this bazaar even at bargain prices. Quite impressive and good trekking exercise bumping and finding your way through a sea of people.
This is one of the largest bazaars I have seen. It is a little overwhelming when you enter and I found the overhead neon lights a bit to commercial. There is "stall after stall" selling everything from hand bags, jackets, scarves, toys, gadgets, jewelry, and of course, rugs! It is actually very organized with specific goods located in…
Good place indeed, especially if you are looking for traditional Turkish merchandises in a traditional setting …Beautiful tiles and ceramics, accessories, fabrics, spices and food and many moreee…
After having gone through the nightmare of shopping in Egypt a few years ago, my husband and I were a bit nervous about going to the Grand Bazaar. So glad we did! It is lively but not chaotic, and the shop keepers have good humor and are not pushy at all.
This place is fun to walk around and can be rather entertaining depending on your perspective like when you need a certain size of shoe, and they try and convince you to buy a shoe 3 times smaller or one guy kept on saying, "I am still here!" Some shopkeepers are nice, some funny, some irritating and some aggressive..
A person traveling to such wonderful places should keep an open mind and embrace the hosting place and try to see positive aspects.
Its amazing.a big bazaar with all types of items with different brands are available.If you could bargain it its worth purchasing ,otherwise makes no difference. But its enjoyable even without shopping.