Istanbul Markets and Bazaars: What They Sell, When They Open
Pick a weekday and a district to see the weekly markets, then read what each historic bazaar sells and when it closes.
Table of Contents
Istanbul has two kinds of markets. The historic bazaars, such as the Grand Bazaar and the Spice Bazaar, trade on most days; the weekly neighbourhood markets each set up on one fixed weekday. The finder below shows what is on today.
In short · checked 19.10.2026
The Grand Bazaar is closed on Sundays. The Spice Bazaar is open every day.
- Grand Bazaar: closed on Sundays and public holidays.
- Spice Bazaar: open every day, 08:00–19:30; closed only on 29 October and on the religious holidays.
- Neighbourhood markets: 455 in 39 districts, each on one weekday; 87 are covered.
Which market is open today?
Market finder · checked 19.10.2026
Markets by weekday and district
Pick a weekday and a district. The historic bazaars are always listed below; the weekly neighbourhood markets follow your choice, and the page opens on today in Istanbul.
The bars show how many weekly neighbourhood markets set up on each weekday. The historic bazaars are listed below.
- Mon56
- Tue59
- Wed69
- Thu70
- Fri60
- Sat76
- Sun65
- Historic bazaar
Grand Bazaar (Kapalıçarşı)
Gold and silver jewellery, carpets and fabrics, antiques and souvenirs.
Between Nuruosmaniye, Mercan and Beyazıt.
Closed on Sundays and public holidays.
- Historic bazaar
Spice Bazaar (Mısır Çarşısı)
Spices from around the world and across Turkey, and souvenirs.
Eminönü, behind the New Mosque (Yeni Cami).
Open every day, 08:00–19:30. Closed only on 29 October and on the religious holidays.
- Book market
Sahaflar Çarşısı
Old books and publications, and current ones.
Between the Grand Bazaar’s Fesçiler Gate and the Beyazıt Mosque.
- Souvenir arcade
Arasta Bazaar
About 70 shops with souvenirs, İznik tiles and Turkey-themed goods.
Directly behind the Sultanahmet Mosque.
- Antiques
Horhor and Çukurcuma
More than 200 antique shops at Horhor (Fatih); antique shops and old houses in Çukurcuma (Beyoğlu).
Weekly markets: IBB Open Data lists of neighbourhood markets, checked 19.10.2026. Bazaar days and hours: the pages named under Sources.
The two big bazaars Grand Bazaar and Spice Bazaar
The Grand Bazaar sells jewellery, carpets and antiques and is closed on Sundays. The Spice Bazaar sells spices and is open every day.
A covered city of 61 streets
Between Nuruosmaniye, Mercan and Beyazıt. Construction began in 1460 under Sultan Mehmed II, and the bazaar was rebuilt after the 1894 earthquake. It covers 30.7 hectares with 4,400 shops and 2,195 workshops (the city’s count, February 2020). Shops sell gold, silver and gemstone jewellery, carpets and fabrics, antiques and souvenirs.
The covered market behind the New Mosque
In Eminönü, next to the Flower Market and behind Yeni Cami. Turhan Sultan, the mother of Mehmed IV, had it built from 1660; it was finished in 1664 and restored in 2015–2018. It sells spices from around the world and across Turkey, and souvenirs.
Getting there: see Transportation in Istanbul.
Three more old markets books, tiles and antiques
Sahaflar sells books, Arasta sells tiles and souvenirs, and Horhor and Çukurcuma sell antiques. Kadınlar Pazarı sells regional food.
Sahaflar Çarşısı
Between the Grand Bazaar’s Fesçiler Gate and the Beyazıt Mosque. Old books and publications, and current ones.
Arasta Bazaar
Directly behind the Sultanahmet Mosque. About 70 shops sell souvenirs, İznik tiles and Turkey-themed goods. The Great Palace Mosaics Museum is inside the bazaar.
Horhor
More than 200 shops selling antiques.
Çukurcuma
A neighbourhood of old houses, coloured streets and antique shops.
Kadınlar Pazarı
A market of regional products and delicacies.
What to buy where pick the goods
Spices go with the Spice Bazaar, jewellery and carpets with the Grand Bazaar, old books with Sahaflar.
What do you want to buy?
Spice Bazaar
The Spice Bazaar is the place for spices: they come from around the world and across Turkey, and the stalls also sell souvenirs. In the past the market also sold medicinal herbs and cotton goods.
- Where
- Eminönü, behind the New Mosque (Yeni Cami)
- Open
- Every day, 08:00–19:30; closed 29 October and the religious holidays
Grand Bazaar
Gold jewellery comes first in the Grand Bazaar; silver and gemstone jewellery, carpets, fabrics, antiques and souvenirs follow. The IBB İstanbul Senin article also names herbalists, leather craftsmen, coppersmiths, tile makers and dealers in hand-woven carpets.
- Where
- Between Nuruosmaniye, Mercan and Beyazıt
- Closed
- Sundays and public holidays
Sahaflar Çarşısı
Sahaflar is the book market: old books and publications, and current ones.
- Where
- Between the Grand Bazaar’s Fesçiler Gate and the Beyazıt Mosque
Arasta Bazaar
About 70 shops in Arasta sell souvenirs, İznik tiles and goods about Turkey. The Great Palace Mosaics Museum stands inside the bazaar.
- Where
- Directly behind the Sultanahmet Mosque
Horhor and Çukurcuma
Horhor has more than 200 antique shops. Çukurcuma is a Beyoğlu neighbourhood of old houses and antique shops.
- Where
- Horhor in Fatih; Çukurcuma in Beyoğlu
Kadınlar Pazarı
Kadınlar Pazarı is a market of regional products and delicacies.
- Where
- Fatih
Weekly neighbourhood markets one weekday each
A neighbourhood market (semt pazarı) sets up on the same weekday every week. The Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality’s lists have 455 of them in 39 districts, from 56 on Mondays to 76 on Saturdays.
- Markets
- 455
- Districts
- 39
- Covered
- 87
- With a fish seller
- 384
Each entry in the lists gives the district, the neighbourhood, the street, the weekday, a size or type and whether the market has a fish seller. The finder above filters all of it and links each market to a map point.
The large and covered ones near the centre
In Bakırköy, Beyoğlu, Beşiktaş, Eyüpsultan, Fatih, Kadıköy, Zeytinburnu, Üsküdar and Şişli, the lists mark 31 markets as large or covered. Here they are by weekday, each with its district in brackets.
| Day | Covered | Large |
|---|---|---|
| Monday | Feriköy Bomonti 1 (Şişli) | Göztepe (Kadıköy), Telsiz (Zeytinburnu) |
| Tuesday | Silahtarağa (Eyüpsultan), Merkez 1 (Kadıköy) | Şehremini (Fatih) |
| Wednesday | Yeşilköy (Bakırköy), Ulus (Beşiktaş) | Fatih Çarşamba (Fatih), Veliefendi (Zeytinburnu) |
| Thursday | Göktürk (Eyüpsultan), Bulgurlu (Üsküdar), Feriköy Bomonti 2 (Şişli) | Erenköy (Kadıköy) |
| Friday | İslambey (Eyüpsultan), Merkez 2 (Kadıköy), Seyitnizam (Zeytinburnu) | Kasımpaşa (Beyoğlu), Haseki Sultan (Fatih), Fikirtepe (Kadıköy), Kozyatağı (Kadıköy), Merkez (Üsküdar) |
| Saturday | Bakırköy Cumartesi (Bakırköy), Beşiktaş (Beşiktaş), Merkezefendi Org (Zeytinburnu), Kirazlıtepe (Üsküdar) | Kocamustafapaşa (Fatih), Sahrayıcedid (Kadıköy) |
| Sunday | Göktürk merkez (Eyüpsultan), Küçüksu (Üsküdar) | Sümer (Zeytinburnu) |
Buying clothes in bulk? See the guide to wholesale clothing in Turkey. Looking for luxury shops? See the guide to luxury shopping in Istanbul.
When they close Sundays, 29 October, religious holidays
Closing days
Grand Bazaar: not on Sundays. Spice Bazaar: every day but 29 October and the religious holidays.
The Grand Bazaar is closed on Sundays and public holidays. The Spice Bazaar opens every day from 08:00 to 19:30 and closes only on 29 October and on the religious holidays.
The two religious holidays are Ramazan Bayramı and Kurban Bayramı. Their dates move every year: see the public holidays page.
Sources and licence
- İstanbul İli Balıkçı Bulunan Semt Pazarları (2025 list) — IBB Open Data, Agricultural Services Department, updated 12.02.2026, checked 19.10.2026
- İstanbul İli Balıkçı Bulunmayan Semt Pazarları (2024 list) — IBB Open Data, Agricultural Services Department, record updated 28.04.2026, checked 19.10.2026
- Kapalıçarşı hakkında her şey — kultur.istanbul, page of 3 February 2020, checked 19.10.2026
- Çarşılar-Bedestenler — Istanbul Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism, checked 19.10.2026
- Fatih Mısır Çarşısı — Istanbul Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism, checked 19.10.2026
- İstanbul’da Görülmesi Gereken Tarihi Çarşılar — IBB İstanbul Senin, 1 July 2022, checked 19.10.2026
Weekly-market data (IBB Open Data): Contains public sector information licensed under the Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0). Licence: Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Open Data License. The illustrations were drawn for this guide.
