Very busy bridge. We were staying in a hotel nearby and crossed it many times a day as a result…read more Hundreds of men fishing from both sides of the bridge all day and deep into the night, which we know because we were up with jet lag and walk the bridge at night too. If you visit Istanbul this bridge is certainly one to walk over. There are two levels you can walk, the lower level has tons of resistant. You'll get nice views of the Bosphorus river and tons of boats. It's a very active area, both on land and water. 1 1

Much of our adventure in Istanbul involved Ottoman era mosques and museums, but the getting to and…read morefrom them involved walking through living Istanbul. In the category of life in Istanbul, this bridge tops the list. It's a long wide bridge where people are fishing, lovers hold hands, tourists local and international admire the Bosphorus and it's a very pleasant walk even in inclement off season weather. Good shopping on either end, some interesting places to eat right under (yes under the bridge) and awesome views of both the Occidental and Oriental sides.