Istanbul is literally a meeting point of the east and the west. It is the only metropolis in the world that specifically lies on two separate continents. Its eastern portion is in Asia, while its western portion is in Europe.
If you’re coming from Paris and you want to experience long, but adventurous train travel — instead of booking a flight when going to Istanbul — it takes a minimum of three nights of fun, intriguing and thrilling travel across Europe.
Travel Route
Using the major train services around Europe, you can begin your travel eastward by first riding a City Night Line sleeper train coming from London. Traveling this overnight train from Paris, you will hop from one available train service to the next with your intercity route leading you to a number of key European cities including Munich, Vienna, Budapest, Bucharest, Stara Zagora, and finally, Istanbul. This means crossing the five countries Germany, Austria, Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria before reaching your final destination in Turkey.
Alternatively, from Budapest, there are routes that pass by the Serbian capital Belgrade and the Bulgarian capital Sofia, instead of crossing the northern route going to Romania and other northern Bulgarian cities.
Going Fast or Taking Time
While it is expected that travelers who need to reach Istanbul as soon as possible would take the plane, train passengers are typically those who have luxury time to savor the trip from France to Turkey.
Depending on how much time and budget you allot for the trip, you can either travel straight from one train to the next for three days or do a few hours or even days of stopovers from one city to the next. As the trains generally serve passengers daily, it is up to you how you plan to maximize your trip.
In most cases, each train is ticketed separately so you can book each city itinerary according to your preferences. This won’t really affect the cost of your travel. However, careful planning is essential as trains require reservations and it is not possible to merely hop on each train without booking ahead of time. If you want additional savings, check if the InterRail pass is something that would fit your travel plans.
Reaching Istanbul
You can search on the best Istanbul tour packages online or you can plan your travel itinerary around the city on your own.
If you’re a first-timer in the city, one of the best options is to explore the palaces, mosques, basilicas and other architectural attractions around. This allows you to take photos and videos of yourself in such magnificent and historical places. You can visit the Topkapi Palace, which served as the official residence of the Ottoman Sultans for 400 years starting from the mid-15th century. Another ideal tourist spot to check out is the Blue Mosque, one of the most famous classical Ottoman-style monuments in the country. The 6th century structure Hagia Sophia offers a massive dome marking the glory of the Byzantine architecture. Now a museum, it also served as a patriarchal basilica and a mosque during different periods in Turkey’s history.
Exploring and splurging around the historical shopping haven called the Grand Bazaar is another must-do when in Istanbul. This is not only one of the world’s largest covered markets featuring dozens of streets and thousands of shops, it has also been existing since the 14th century.
Make sure you check the updated information for all tourist attractions you visit as it is possible that they are closed during a particular day of the week.