7 Best Sights in Beyoğlu, Istanbul

Currently housed in a temporary space while its usual home on the shore of the Bosphorus is rebuilt, the İstanbul Modern of Modern Art showcases modern and contemporary painting, sculpture, photography, and works in other media from Turkey and around the world. A top-notch program of temporary exhibitions features significant local and international contemporary artists. A private tour can be organized in English for groups of four or more (20 TL per person) and will give you a good introduction to the art scene in Turkey. The museum also has a small cinema, café, and design store.

Just off İstiklal Caddesi, next to the entrance to the Çiçek Pasajı, the Balık Pazarı makes for great street theater: it's a bustling labyrinth of streets filled with stands selling fish, produce, spices, sweets, and souvenirs, and there are also a couple of eateries specializing in kokoreç (grilled lamb intestines). The adjacent Second Empire–style arcade, known as Çiçek Pasajı, was one of Istanbul's grandest shopping venues when it was built in 1876. In the early 20th century, it was gradually taken over by flower shops run by White Russian émigrés—earning it the name "Flower Arcade." In later decades, the arcade became dominated by famously boisterous meyhanes, or tavernas. It now houses about a dozen rather touristy meyhane-style restaurants offering meze and fish. For a more authentic local vibe, continue toward the end of the Fish Market and turn right on narrow Nevizade Sokak, a lively strip of bars and meyhanes, all with tiny sidewalk tables packed with locals in summer.

Istanbul's oldest Mevlevi dervish lodge, which served as a meeting place and residence for whirling dervishes (followers of the Sufi mystic Celaleddin Rumi), was founded on this site in 1491 and rebuilt after a fire in 1765. Recently restored, it now houses a small but interesting museum with displays of dervish garments, handicrafts, and other artifacts, along with background information about the Mevlevi order and Sufism more generally. On the upstairs floor of the lodge's semahane (ceremonial hall) are additional exhibits of calligraphy, ebru (traditional marbling art), and musical instruments. The serene, leafy grounds contain a handful of tombs and a small cemetery. The biggest draws, however, are the sema ceremonies (popularly known as whirling dervish ceremonies) that are performed by different Sufi groups at 5 pm each Sunday in the semahane. Tickets are sold in front of the museum on ceremony days only; it's best to buy them early in the day because performances can sell out.

Nobel Prize–winning Turkish novelist Orhan Pamuk's Museum of Innocence is one of the most unusual museums in Istanbul—and, perhaps, in the world. Opened in 2012 in the gentrifying Çukurcuma neighborhood in a former town house dating from the late 19th century, it's based on Pamuk's eponymous novel chronicling a decades-long story of unrequited love. On display are thousands of everyday objects, from vintage silverware and clothing to lottery tickets and matchbooks—obsessively "collected" over the years by the novel's main character—that portray daily life in Istanbul over the second half of the 20th century. The quirky, intimate museum is a must-see for anyone familiar with Pamuk's work or who is interested in Turkish social history, though some may find it esoteric. Audio tours available in English offer context.

A small private museum housed in a grand 1893 building (the former Bristol Hotel), the Pera showcases diverse exhibits. It's best known, however, for its permanent collection of Orientalist paintings by both European and Ottoman artists from the 17th to 19th century and including panoramas of the city and court life; The Tortoise Trainer by Osman Hamdi Bey—a late-Ottoman painter who also founded the Istanbul Archaeological Museums—is particularly famous. One of the two smaller permanent exhibits focuses on Kütahya ceramics and tiles, the other on the history of Anatolian weights and measures from the Hittite period to the early 20th century. The upper three levels house well-conceived temporary exhibits featuring local and international artists. The museum also runs a regular film program, often featuring international and subtitled selections, in its basement screening room.

At the north end of İstiklal Caddesi, Istanbul's largest public square was once essentially a chaotic traffic circle and public transportation hub, but the Istanbul municipality undertook a project to completely pedestrianize the area and create a true open plaza. The entrance to the Taksim Square station, from which both the metro and the funicular going down to Kabataş can be reached, is in the square, so you'll probably end up here at one point or another. The open area at the top of İstiklal is dominated by the Monument of the Republic, built in 1928 and featuring Atatürk and his revolutionary cohorts. Cumhuriyet Caddesi, the main street heading north from the square, is lined with travel agencies, currency-exchange offices, and airline ticket offices. Farther up Cumhuriyet, Vali Konağı Caddesi splits off from the avenue and veers right, taking you to Nişantaşı, the city's high-fashion district.