Istanbul's Lighthouses from the Marmara to the Black Sea

The first stop of day one is Yeşilköy Point. Known in the past as the Ayastefanos Lighthouse, it is described as the first historic lighthouse met by ships heading from the Sea of Marmara towards the Bosphorus. It was built in 1856, the year the Ottoman state agreed with the French on running its lighthouses, by the lighthouse administration headed by the French-born Michel Pasha; the English Wikipedia records that it was first lit on 5 January 1857.

The stone tower is an octagonal prism rising from the middle of the keeper's house. It stands 16 metres above the ground and 23 metres above sea level, and its light can be seen 15 nautical miles away. Over the years its light source moved from kerosene to an acetylene-fired Dalén lamp and then to electricity. The lighthouse was repaired in 1945, 1971 and 1988 and is still a working aid to navigation run by the Directorate General of Coastal Safety.

The tower is not among the lighthouses the Directorate has opened to tourism, and you cannot go inside. See it from the shore and its surroundings. Notice how the octagonal shaft rises from the middle of the keeper's house and the balcony around the lantern room. The light of Rumeli Feneri, which you will see on day two, shines 58 metres above the sea; the 23 metres here sums up in one number the difference between the low Marmara shore and the high headlands at the Black Sea entrance.

You can walk here from Yeşilköy Marmaray station by heading down to the shore. The wind can be strong on this point facing the open Marmara; early morning is calm and gives soft light for photographs. From here return to the Marmaray and ride to Sirkeci.

Source: Wikipedia; Wikipedia; Kıyı Emniyeti Genel Müdürlüğü.

Walk from Sirkeci along the shore road round Sarayburnu and you will see the Ahırkapı Lighthouse beside Kennedy Avenue, at the foot of the Marmara sea walls. The story of a light here is about a century older than that of most lighthouses on the route. In 1755, after a galleon ran aground off Kumkapı in bad weather, Osman III ordered a light to be set on the walls with lamps lit every night. The present stone tower was built in 1857, after the Crimean War, in the reign of Sultan Abdülmecid; the English Wikipedia notes that French engineers worked on it.

Look at its form. The balcony of the cylindrical shaft, rising from a square base, recalls the balcony of a minaret. The tower is 26 metres high, its light shines 36 metres above the sea and can be seen 16 nautical miles away. The single black band around the white shaft is a daymark that helps sailors identify it.

The lighthouse's relationship with the sea changed in 1958 when the coastal road was built, and the tower no longer stands right at the water's edge. The Turkish Wikipedia records that from 1907 to 1995 the light was kept by the women of the Lik family, one of the lesser-known human stories in Istanbul's lighthouse history. Its upkeep once fell to the Bostancı corps; today it is handled by the Directorate General of Coastal Safety.

The tower is not open to visitors; see it from the seaward side of the coastal road and from in front of the walls. The water in front of you appears in Coastal Safety records as the Ahırkapı anchorage, so you may well see ships lying at anchor offshore. From here return to Sirkeci and take the Marmaray to Üsküdar.

Source: Wikipedia; Wikipedia; Kıyı Emniyeti Genel Müdürlüğü.

Take the Marmaray to Üsküdar and walk to the Salacak shore. Standing about 200 metres off the Üsküdar coast, the Maiden's Tower is the oldest structure on the route and the least known as a lighthouse. Sources link the first building here to a wooden tower protected by a stone wall, built in 1110 by the Byzantine emperor Alexios I. The tower was destroyed in the earthquake of 1509 and rebuilt, burned in 1721 and was then rebuilt and used as a lighthouse. It was renewed in more durable stone in 1763 and took its present appearance from a restoration ordered by Mahmud II in 1832. The Turkish Wikipedia stresses that the tower never lost this role, guiding passing ships at night with its light.

The Ministry of Culture and Tourism began the most recent major restoration in 2021, and after more than two years of work the tower reopened to visitors as a monument in May 2023. Walls weakened by salt crystallisation were strengthened with stainless steel ties. Standing on a small islet off the shore at the southern entrance to the Bosphorus, the tower has served as a landmark seen from afar by day and, with its light, as a warning point by night.

You reach the tower by boats leaving from the shore. Check departure points, boat times and opening hours on the official website. Inside, look out of the windows as you walk round: on one side the historic peninsula and Sarayburnu, on the other the Üsküdar shore and the entrance to the Bosphorus. Ahırkapı, which you have just seen, and this tower mark the southern mouth of the Bosphorus from either side.

If you do not take the boat, watching the tower from the Salacak shore is enough. From here take the Marmaray to Feneryolu.

Source: Kız Kulesi resmi sitesi; Wikipedia; Wikipedia.

For the last lighthouse of day one, take the Marmaray to Feneryolu and walk or take a short bus ride to the park on Fenerbahçe Point. The headland was once called Kalamış Point. Historical documents say its position often caused accidents at sea, and Sultan Süleyman is recorded as having issued a decree in 1562 for a light to be lit here. The present tower was built in 1857.

The white cylindrical shaft has two balconies, and the lantern is white too. The single-storey masonry keeper's house attached to the tower is still in place, and both are protected as registered heritage. Like the other lighthouses on the route, the light moved from kerosene to acetylene and then to electricity; today it flashes twice every 12 seconds and can be seen 15 nautical miles away. Each lighthouse has its own flashing pattern by which sailors recognise it, and if you wait until dusk you can count the rhythm.

The park is open to everyone, but the tower is closed. See the lighthouse from inside the park and from the rocky shore facing the Marmara. Notice how the shaft joins the keeper's house and how the balconies line up; for photographs, look for angles on the shore where you can frame the tower against the sea.

Fenerbahçe Park is also covered as a park in Radar's Kadıköy waterfront route; here, see it as the Marmara link of Istanbul's chain of lighthouses on the Asian side. End the day here, waiting until the light comes on; on day two you will drive to the Black Sea entrance.

Source: Wikipedia; Kıyı Emniyeti Genel Müdürlüğü.

Start day two early and by car. Rumeli Feneri rises on the European side at the mouth where the Bosphorus opens into the Black Sea, inside the Sarıyer village that took its name. It was built during the Crimean War so that French and British warships could enter and leave the Black Sea safely. According to the Turkish Wikipedia, the French-born Michel Pasha had the tower built together with Anadolu Feneri on the opposite shore, and the light went into service on 15 May 1856. The hundred-year concession granted to the French was cancelled in 1933 and the lighthouse passed to Turkish administration.

The 30-metre tower was built in three stages and has a two-tiered octagonal shaft. The light shines 58 metres above sea level and its white beam can be seen 18 nautical miles away. The lamp moved from kerosene to acetylene and then to electricity, with bottled butane as a backup.

Rumeli Feneri is not on the Directorate's list of lighthouses opened to tourism, so plan to explore its surroundings rather than the tower itself. See it from the village streets and the shore. Look across the water: Anadolu Feneri is only 2 nautical miles away in a straight line. The two lights facing each other show ships coming in from the Black Sea both edges of the strait's mouth at once.

To reach Anadolu Feneri by road from here, you have to loop round to the Asian side over the Yavuz Sultan Selim Bridge. Check traffic conditions before you set off.

Source: Wikipedia; Wikipedia; Kıyı Emniyeti Genel Müdürlüğü.

Anadolu Feneri stands on the Asian side at the northern end of the Bosphorus where it meets the Black Sea, on Yum Point (called Yon or Hrom Point in some sources), at the edge of the Beykoz village that bears its name. The first light here was set up in the 1830s. The present tower went into service during the Crimean War on the same day as Rumeli Feneri, 15 May 1856. The French concession ended in 1933, and the lighthouse is run today by the Directorate General of Coastal Safety.

The white cylindrical tower with its balcony and lantern is about 20 metres tall, but because it stands on a rocky headland its light shines about 75 metres above the sea. A two-storey keeper's house is attached to the tower. Like the others, its light source moved from kerosene to acetylene and then to electricity. The Turkish Wikipedia describes Anadolu Feneri as one of the rare lighthouses that keeps its original form.

The Directorate General of Coastal Safety counts Anadolu Feneri among the lighthouses it has opened to tourism. Visiting arrangements can change, though, so confirm the current situation before you go. The village is a small fishing settlement; watch the lighthouse from the slope around it, with the open Black Sea on one side and Rumeli Feneri on the other. You will see in reverse the view you looked at from the European side in the morning.

The wind blows hard on the rocks of the headland, so take care going down to the shore and keep children close. From here set off towards Şile on the roads running parallel to the Black Sea coast; this is the longest drive of the route.

Source: Kıyı Emniyeti Genel Müdürlüğü; Wikipedia; Wikipedia.

The last lighthouse on the route, the Şile Lighthouse, stands about a kilometre northeast of the town on Şile Point, on rocks rising 60 metres above the sea. It was built in 1859, in the reign of Sultan Abdülmecid, and first lit in 1860. The Turkish Wikipedia credits it to the lighthouse administration headed by the French-born Michel Pasha, which makes it a link in the same chain that began at Yeşilköy.

The stone tower, an octagonal prism, is 19 metres high. Its white shaft is ringed with narrow black horizontal bands, and a single-storey keeper's house is attached. Its light can be seen 20 nautical miles away. The lamp, which burned gas in its early years, switched to electricity in 1968.

The Şile Lighthouse heads the Directorate General of Coastal Safety's list of lighthouses opened to tourism, and the Turkish Wikipedia notes that it has been turned into a museum. It is the lighthouse on this route where you are most likely to get inside; check current visiting days and hours before you go. If you do, notice the octagonal plan, the thickness of the stone walls and the way up to the lantern room.

From around the lighthouse look out over the Şile shore and the open Black Sea. Wind and waves are strong on the rocks, so take care near the water. If you wait for the light to come on, remember you will be driving back in the dark. The beaches of Şile and Ağva and the town itself are covered in Radar's travel pieces; if you have time, stay the night and explore the town the next day.

Source: Kıyı Emniyeti Genel Müdürlüğü; Wikipedia; Wikipedia.