Çamlıca Hill (viewpoint)

Çamlıca Hill (Çamlıca Tepesi, 288m) is the highest natural point on Istanbul's Asian side. For centuries it was a hilltop meadow where the Byzantine emperors hunted, then an Ottoman imperial grove, then a public park in the 20th century. Today the hilltop is a free public space with walking paths through pine and cypress, a tea garden with the best view in the city, and the base for the Çamlıca TV Tower (the separately ticketed observation deck) and the Büyük Çamlıca Mosque (in the valley below to the north).

The view from the hilltop is the real reason to come. On a clear day you can see the Bosphorus from end to end, the two bridges, the entire old-city skyline (Hagia Sophia, the Süleymaniye, the Topkapı), the Asian shore stretching down to Kadıköy, and on a really clear day the Princes' Islands on the Marmara. Bring a picnic, buy a tea from the kiosk, and give yourself an hour to take it in.

The hill is best visited around sunset: the light drops into the Bosphorus, the bridges light up, and the call to prayer echoes across the city. Locals come here on weekend mornings for the walking paths and the tea. There's no entry fee and the tea garden is open daily.