Daily Tours Istanbul – The first shopping mall of the world!?
That’s true. The Grand Bazaar is the first mall of the world. It is also like a living museum. Why a museum?! And why living?! Well, we can call it a museum because of its great 557 years of history. Not only that but all the visitors as well going to the Bazaar every day and all the shops that sell modern and traditional things. And that’s what makes it living – all its visitors. All these people, locals or tourists, all with their stories and worries. All of them looking for something – a specific herb or simply time spent great. The Grand Bazaar is the ideal place for shopping lovers and positive-emotion seekers. The Grand Bazaar is the perfect jewel for Istanbul. Make sure you join daily tours Istanbul or Istanbul old city tours. There your guide Ensar will teach you the not-so-easy job of bargaining.
You feel the temptation to be a part of a place where people make business deals? The place where import/export businesses flourish, and you have a real interest in bargaining? Then, why not visit one of Istanbul’s most significant tourist sites? Although people mainly consider it a tourist trap, the Grand Bazaar – one of the biggest covered markets in the world, attracts locals as well. Once you are there, make sure you are full of patience and desire to make good deals. For the Grand Bazaar is a place where bargaining is a general sport.
Daily tours Istanbul – patience and desire to bargain
Kac Para – How Much
Cok Para – Too Much
Yok Para – No money
Built in 1461, at the command of Fatih Mehmet II, shortly after his Conquest, the Grand Bazaar contains around 4400 shops, 2195 workshops, 497 stalls and 18 fountains. It was one of the most important projects of the Ottoman Empire’s economy. The idea of the Sultan was by building this big bazaar, to have income which would support the construction of Haghia Sophia.
The giant labyrinth
The design of the Grand Bazaar was one of a labyrinth. You could and still can, actually lose your way easily. On the other hand, that is one of the charming things about the bazaar. Another thing is the interesting aesthetics. The Grand Bazaar is not just a covered market. It is, with all the mosques, banks, police stations, restaurants and workshops, a covered city of its own. There are 60 covered streets in the bazaar. Each one of the streets has the name of the seller of a particular good.
It is possible while having your private tour of Istanbul, to lose the way inside. Besides losing the way, you should know that the Bazaar is in the list of the 20 things in the world that you have to see and do. It is also in the list of the places to explore and the things to enjoy while having private Turkey tours. The bazaar was vastly enlarged in the 16th century, during the reign of Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent. In 1894 it underwent a major restoration following an earthquake.
Daily Tours Istanbul – you feel part of the big family called Grand Bazaar
The Bazaar initially consisted of just two bedestens (warehouses). Soon merchants began to set up their own stalls and workshops in the surrounding area. The Bazaar grew to cover a vast area as neighbouring shopkeepers decided to put up roofs and porches so that they could conduct commerce comfortably in all weather. Finally, a system of locked gates and doors was provided so that at the end of the business day shopkeepers could close up the entire mini-city tight.
There are more than 50 streets in the Grand Bazaar arranged on a grid-like system. Shopkeepers have tended to group themselves according to the type of goods they sell. Whether it is jewellery, antiques, carpets, copper, or leather goods. Street names refer to trades and crafts. For example, Kuyumcular Caddesi (Jewellers’ St) and Inciciler Sokagi (Pearl Merchants’ St) are two that you should walk down. In the 16th and 17th centuries, the Bazaar suffered repeated damage from the fires. Then, in 1894 an earthquake destroyed it altogether. After being rebuilt in 1898, the Bazaar underwent further renovation following the fires of 1943 and 1954.
Grand Bazaar
The Grand Bazaar – the first mall of the world and a significant tourist site. It is better to visit it on Daily Tours Istanbul. The Bazaar is the heart of Istanbul in much more than a geographical sense and has been so for centuries. It is an ideal place for the shopping lovers, for those who enjoy bargaining.
Don’t miss it during your private Istanbul old city tours! You can enjoy the living museum called the Grand Bazaar. The historic, cultural and touristic centre. To feel the beat of this always-popular place, contact me and let me take you around the artistic bazaar.
Hagia Sophia
Blue Mosque
Chora Museum
Hippodrome
The Grand Bazaar or Kapali Carsi is a place I love so much. I feel so relaxed walking in this labyrinth of shops. And, of course, the bargaining, tea drinking, talking with the people there.