Photo: Karakalem, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
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.
The Süleymaniye Hamam is a historic hamam (bathhouse) in Istanbul, Turkey, that forms part of the Süleymaniye Mosque complex. The building, on a hill facing the Golden Horn, was built in 1557 by Turkish architect, Mimar Sinan, and was named for his patron, Süleyman the Magnificent, who had commissioned it. It was sometimes called the 'metalworkers' bath' because many workers from the nearby foundries used to frequent it.
© OpenStreetMap contributors
On top of a hill overlooking the Golden Horn, this is a magnificent mosque built by Sinan in the 1550s. It was centrepiece of a large külliye, a religious complex which included madrasas, a public kitchen and a hospital.. The small cemetery east has the mausoleums of Suleiman the Magnificent and of his wife Hurrem Sultan or Roxelana.
Built in 1564 by Mimar Sinan for Rüstem Pasha, Grand Vizier of Suleiman the Magnificent, this small mosque has an interior covered by beautiful Iznik pottery, then at its zenith.
Imposing mosque built 1500/05. The other parts of the religious complex have found secular use.
This is a triple structure: the church of the Monastery of Pantokrator built 1118, then a public church circa 1136 plus a chapel that served as a royal mausoleum. It became a mosque and medresse in Ottoman times, but without massive alteration so it's a prime example of middle-Byzantine architecture. It's nowadays again a mosque, photogenic by day or dusk but the area should be avoided at night.
İstanbul Demiryolu Müzesi
Housed in the Europe-side railway terminus of 1890, this exhibits Ottoman and modern Turkish railway history. The Orient Express came and went from here, with passengers for further east transferring to ferries then the Asia-side terminus of Haydarpaşa, for trains to Crimea, Baghdad and Damascus.
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.