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Photo: User:Yonca, CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Named after a 16th-century village, founded by Serbs deported from Belgrade when it fell to the Ottomans. The village was popular as a forest resort, but its inhabitants were resettled in the 19th century and it's now a bosky ruin. The forest is mostly primordial and deciduous, predominantly oak. It's dotted with ancient aqueducts and dams as this area was a water catchment for Constantinople / Istanbul, and has lots of walking jogging and cycling trails and picnic areas. The two main ways in are via Bahçeköy (near the Arboretum entrance) and Kemerburgaz (which has the best aqueducts). There's a small access toll. The forest is supposedly a protected area but is being encroached on by highways and suburbs: this is likely to get worse as the access route to Istanbul's new airport leads right through it.
Belgrad Forest is a mixed deciduous forest lying adjacent to Istanbul, Turkey. It is named after the village next to the forest, settled by thousands of Serbs who were deported to the capital Constantinople from the city of Belgrade in 1521, when it fell to the Ottomans. Geographically, the forest is located at the easternmost point of the Thracian Peninsula. Forest terrain is divided between Sarıyer and Eyüp districts. Several historical reservoirs lie within the forest.
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Atatürk Arboretumu
From Bahçeköy village, follow the road into Belgrad Forest towards Kemerburgaz for 10 mins. The arboretum, surrounded by a natural oak forest, is planted with many non-native tree species (many turning crimson/golden/purple as winter approaches) and has a pond with feisty ducks. It's an almost mystic place during hazy autumn days, but is always very scenic no matter what the season. Watch for migratory birds in autumn. No eating, no picnicking, no video photography and no smoking.
Sadberk Hanım Müzesi
A private museum housed in a yalı, the traditional wooden waterfront mansions that line the banks of the Bosphorus. The exhibition includes a number of archaeological and ethnographical artifacts from the collection of the long-time entrepreneur and industrialist Koç Family, though just seeing the interior of a yalı is worth entering.
Nr 1 place in the city for birdwatching.
Emirgan Korusu
Situated on the gentle hill overlooking the neighbourhood of Emirgan and the Bosphorus, Emirgan Park was for long the only place in the city where Istanbulites can admire the beauty of tulips. Having lost that distinction since the first decade of the 2000s as tulips are now everywhere, this is still a beautiful park with artificial ponds, small waterfalls, and impressive views of the Bosphorus. There are also cafes with open-air sections housed in pleasant former imperial hunting manors. Squirrels are there, too, in the middle of this metropolis of more than 15 million people, though you may have to look a bit deeper (or a bit upper on the branches!) to spot them.
Sakıp Sabancı Müzesi
Museum with a rich collection of calligraphy and paintings. It also hosts temporary exhibitions of works by some world-class artists such as Pablo Picasso from time to time.