Dolmabahçe Palace

Compared to all of Istanbul’s other popular historic destinations, Dolmabahçe Palace is one which is relatively new, at just over 150 years old. However it is by far the most elegant and opulent of all the tourist sights in the city.
The palace was built by the Sultan in the mid-1800s when the Topkapı Palace began to lack the modern luxury every royal family in the 19th century deserved. It took more than a decade to complete, but was finished in 1856. The last six sultans and their families lived here until Turkey became a republic, at which point it became one of the president’s palaces.

A staggering 14 tonnes of gold was used to create the gold leaves decorating the ceiling of Dolmabahçe Palace and in today’s terms the palace would cost $1.5 billion USD! The palace boasts nearly 300 rooms and its prime attraction, the crystal chandelier from Queen Victoria of England, is the largest chandelier in the world. It has 750 bulbs and weighs nearly 5 tonnes!
Here at the palace, guided tours are mandatory, given the importance and the value of, well, everything here.

Expert Advice: Guided tours are only as good as the guide. If your guide looks like he’d rather be anywhere but here, I highly recommend waiting a few minutes for the next tour guide. There is a lot of fascinating items inside but they are better appreciated when you know the story behind them.

This is the only museum not included on the Istanbul Museum Pass. Foreign entrance fee is 20 TL (about $7 USD).