Nuruosmaniye Mosque

This was rediscovered in 2010 when an overlying building was demolished. It was built circa 430 AD to store water brought in by Valens Aqueduct. It's smaller than the better-known Basilica Cistern, but better lit, more atmospheric and less touristy.

Built in 1741, the last major hamam opened in the Ottoman era. It has ornate architecture, great service and a stellar cast of famous visitors. Prices to match, and only tourists now use it.

Imposing mosque built 1500/05. The other parts of the religious complex have found secular use.

Sokollu Mehmet Pasha was the grand vizier and de facto ruler of the Ottoman Empire during its 16th century golden age. He commissioned this mosque, one of three in the city to bear his name, but the sloping site was a challenge. He hired the best, Mimar Sinan, who completed it in 979 AH / 1571 AD, with the slope resolved by a fronting courtyard above shops and a medrese. The interior has outstanding İznik blue tiles, and three fragments of the Black Stone (Hajar al-Aswad) of the Kaaba: above the main entrance, minbar and mihrab.

Vast underground cistern built by Justinian in 532 to store the city's water, the largest and best-known of the hundreds constructed. It's a cathedral-like space with 336 richly decorated columns. Time was you explored in a little rowing boat, but tourist numbers have soared and water levels have dropped, so now you follow a boardwalk, with lights, piped music and art installations. It's sometimes a film location, and stages concerts. But the crowds rob it of atmosphere and you might prefer to seek out one of the less-visited cisterns.

Commissioned by Süleyman the Magnificent and built by Mimar Sinan in 1550, at the east edge of Süleymaniye mosque complex. It had private cubicles for distinguished visitors such as the sultan, but was mostly a standard working-class bathhouse. It was restored in 2001 and is nowadays touristy. It's the only mixed hamam in Istanbul, but mixed sessions are only for couples and families.