Istanbul Biennial is a contemporary art exhibition held every two years in Istanbul. font-stretch: inherit; line-height: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size-adjust: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; vertical-align: baseline;"1987, Biennale organized by Istanbul Culture and Arts FoundationSince its establishment. The Biennial aims to create a meeting point in Istanbul for the fields of Visual Artsand an exchange between artists and audiences from different cultures. 
The 18th Istanbul Biennial will run from 2025 to 2027 and will be divided into three parts: the first part will be held from September 20 to November 23, 2025, with exhibitions and public programs at its core. The second part, to be held in 2026, will involve collaboration with local arts projects, a permanent educational program and quarterly public events.The final part will take place from 18 September to 14 November 2027 and will include a series of exhibitions, publications, performances and discussions. 
Details of the 2026 and 2027 programmes will be announced in the coming months. 

Istanbul

Türkiye

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18th Istanbul Biennial | Istanbul

18th Istanbul Biennial

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Themed exhibition halls

Exhibitions

Mandarin Oriental Bosphorus, Istanbul

Near Ciragan Palace Kempinski|Besiktas, Istanbul

Luxury Hotels

Four Seasons Hotel Istanbul at Sultanahmet

Near Hagia Sophia|Sultan Ahmed Mosque, Istanbul

Instagrammable Hotels

Hagia Sophia

Immediate access

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Best Things to Do

M43***18

Hagia Sophia Scenic Spot Reviews 
&zwnj;Historical and Cultural Values ​​&zwnj; &zwnj;Architectural Status &zwnj;: Hagia Sophia is a masterpiece of Byzantine architecture, combining Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman elements, with an iconic dome. It was once one of the largest churches in the medieval world &zwnj;12. 
&zwnj;Religious Changes &zwnj;: It was originally an Orthodox cathedral (537), converted into a mosque after 1453, became a museum in 1935, and restored to a mosque again in 2020, but it is still open to the public, symbolizing cultural integration and historical changes &zwnj;12. 
&zwnj;Naming Origin &zwnj;: The Bulgarian capital Sofia is named after this church, which dates back to the 6th century AD. The existing main hall and tower were built in the Byzantine period &zwnj;3. 
&zwnj;Architectural Features and Interior Landscape &zwnj; &zwnj;Appearance &zwnj;: Typical mosque domes and minarets, with ablution pavilions and carved stone columns at the entrance &zwnj;2. 
&zwnj;Central Hall&zwnj;: Multi-colored marble floors and walls, the dome retains Byzantine murals, and a giant Arabic gold plate (with names) is hung &zwnj;2.
&zwnj;Special Area&zwnj;: 
&zwnj;Emperor&#39;s Gate&zwnj;: Among the 9 doors in the antechamber, the middle door is only for the emperor &zwnj;2.
&zwnj;Second Floor Corridor&zwnj;: Reachable through a spiral passage, it was once the worship area for the nobles &zwnj;2.
&zwnj;Crypt: Additional fee required for visit, including early Christian mosaic decorations and ancient tombs &zwnj;3.
&zwnj;Tourist Experience and Evaluation&zwnj; &zwnj;Highlights&zwnj;: 
The building is magnificent, the dome and murals are shocking, and the lighting effect is excellent at night &zwnj;12.
The cultural and historical heritage is profound, suitable for visiting after understanding the background in advance &zwnj;13.
&zwnj;Disadvantages&zwnj;: 
It may appear messy during the renovation period, and the ticket price is high &zwnj;1.
There are dense tourists and heavy commercialization, and some areas require additional charges &zwnj;13.
&zwnj;Practical Information&zwnj; &zwnj;Location&zwnj;: Istanbul, Turkey, across the street from the Blue Mosque &zwnj;2. &zwnj;Suggestion&zwnj;: Combined with a historical tour or audio guide, you can have a deeper understanding of its artistic and religious significance&zwnj;13.
As a world heritage site, Hagia Sophia is a cultural landmark that cannot be missed from the perspective of architecture, history and religion, but you need to weigh the visitor experience and personal interests&zwnj;12.

Basilica Cistern

Historic buildings

Night view

Comprehensive review of Istanbul Groundwater Palace attractions &zwnj; History and architectural characteristics &zwnj;&zwnj; scale and function &zwnj;: Groundwater Palace (Yerebatan Sarn c) is a giant underground reservoir built during the Byzantine period (6th century), 140 meters long and 70 meters wide, the area is equivalent to a standard football field, and the water storage volume reaches 80,000-100,000 tons. It has supplied water to the palace and surrounding areas, and has military defense functions. 336 stone pillars with 9 meters high support vaults, and the columns are mostly carried from the temples in Anatolia. The pillars are carved in different styles (such as Corinthian and Doric), showing the wisdom of ancient architecture. &zwnj; Mystery Element &zwnj;: &zwnj; Tear Column &zwnj;: Stone columns with teardrops, it is rumored to commemorate the slaves who died in the construction. &zwnj; Medusa avatar &zwnj;: The head of the snake haired female demon on the bottom of the pool is inverted and placed on the side. The source is a mystery, which may be a symbol of avoiding evil or deterring enemies. &zwnj; 23. &zwnj; Cultural influence &zwnj;: Many movies (such as &quot;007 Big Breaking Crisis&quot; &quot;Secret Service Micheng&quot; &quot;Dante Password&quot;) are filmed here, adding its mysterious color &zwnj; 12. &zwnj; Tour experience &zwnj;&zwnj; Highlights &zwnj;: The underground space is magnificent and shocking, and the lighting and water reflection create a dreamy atmosphere, suitable for photography and history lovers &zwnj;23. Adjacent to the Hagia Sophia Cathedral and the Blue Mosque, you can visit &zwnj;12 in series. &zwnj; Dispute Point &zwnj;: &zwnj; Ticket price &zwnj;: The fare for foreign tourists is about 130 yuan, far higher than the price of local residents (about 1/5), and the price/performance ratio is questioned &zwnj; 4. &zwnj; Tour duration &zwnj;: The whole journey is about 15 minutes. Some tourists think the content is thin, and only the lighting effect and a small number of relics support &zwnj; 4. &zwnj; Entrance hidden &zwnj;: Entrance logo is not obvious, you need to patiently find &zwnj; 24. &zwnj; Suggest &zwnj;&zwnj; Recommended crowd &zwnj;: Tourists interested in historical, architectural or movie shooting locations; if time is sufficient and budget allows, you can plan in combination with surrounding attractions &zwnj; 12. &zwnj; Avoid pit prompt &zwnj;: Inquire about fare policy in advance to reduce psychological expectations; choose to avoid crowds during off-peak hours &zwnj; 4. &zwnj; Summary &zwnj;: The underground palace is a unique &quot;underground miracle&quot; in Istanbul. Its historical value and mystery are worth exploring, but it is necessary to weigh the cost of tickets and personal interests.

Ciragan Palace Kempinski Istanbul

Raffles Istanbul

Four Seasons Hotel Istanbul at the Bosphorus

Scenic Hotels

Bosphorus

Beaches and shores

M25***87

The sunset view of the Bosphorus is very beautiful. It is recommended to go to the Emin&ouml;n&uuml; pier to take the turyol company cruise. Be sure to buy the sunset ticket 2 hours before sunset, then go to the nearby restaurants to enjoy the food and wait. The most basic pure tour is about 90 minutes, the boat fee is 150 lira (about 30), On board, there is no performance, no explanation, no food and drink, the boat is average. In fact, the most important thing is to take pictures and enjoy the sunset. There are many places of interest along the coast. You must not miss the Suleimaniyah Mosque and Dorma Bakhche Palace.

Topkapi Palace

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Topkapa Palace (Topkapi Palace) as an iconic attraction in Istanbul, it combines the glorious history and art essence of the Ottoman Empire. The following comprehensive reviews are for reference: &zwnj; Historical and Cultural Value &zwnj; Topkapa Palace is the power center of the Ottoman Empire for nearly 500 years (1465-1853 years), I have lived in 25 Sudan, and now it is the largest museum in Turkey. It has a collection of countless national treasures, Islamic relics and royal treasures. It is called the &quot;Forbidden City of the Ottoman Empire&quot;. It was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1985. Its complex contains four courtyards, a harem, See the Great Hall, etc., showing the perfect integration of Islam and Ottoman style &zwnj; 13. &zwnj; Core highlights &zwnj;&zwnj; Treasures and exhibitions &zwnj;&zwnj; Jewelry Exhibition Hall &zwnj;: displaying gem-encrusted knife, tableware, scriptures, etc., especially famous for a giant diamond and &quot;beds full of gems&quot;, Described by tourists as &quot;unmanned&quot; &zwnj; 2. &zwnj; religious holy things &zwnj;: Collect the original Islamic calligraphy manuscripts, Sudanese relics, etc. The shrine is an important visitation point &zwnj; 13. &zwnj; architectural details &zwnj;: such as the marble-inlaid colonnade of the Baghdad Palace, the inner palace courtyard of the Gate of the Auspicious Gate, Very artistic value &zwnj; 3. &zwnj; landscape advantage &zwnj; Palace is located in the Bosphorus Strait Highland, overlooking the Marmara Sea, Golden Cape Bay and the Asian region on the other side. The garden has a wide view and excellent photos &zwnj; 34. &zwnj; Tourist experience &zwnj;&zwnj; Tickets and time &zwnj;: Tickets 1,500 lira (about 345 yuan), need to be reserved for at least 3 hours to visit, closed on Tuesday. Free Chinese interpreters need to mortgage passport or $100 &zwnj; 2. &zwnj; Tourist Evaluation &zwnj;: Positive: Most tourists think it is &quot;superb&quot;, the exhibits are rich such as &quot;Alibaba Treasure&quot;, and the architecture and strait scenery are shocking &zwnj; 24. Negative: The ticket price is high (compared to the Forbidden City), and some facilities such as the interpreter have typos &zwnj; 2. &zwnj; Practical Suggestion &zwnj;&zwnj; Tour route &zwnj;: Enter from the Emperor&#39;s Gate (first courtyard), visit the Chongjing Gate (second courtyard), the Gate of Jizhao (third courtyard) and the Treasure Hall in turn, and finally go to the Baghdad Palace to enjoy the sea view &zwnj; 3. &zwnj; Surrounding facilities &zwnj;: There are Western restaurants (such as net red NUSR-ET steakhouse) and shopping points nearby, but you need to pay attention to the long straight line distance &zwnj; 4. &zwnj; Summarize &zwnj; Topkapa Palace is a paradise for history lovers and photographers. Despite the expensive tickets, its unparalleled treasures and strait landscape are still worth a special visit. It is recommended to avoid Tuesday and reserve half a day for a deep tour &zwnj;12.

The Blue Mosque

Lina.D

🕌 Blue Mosque (Sultan Ahmed Mosque), Istanbul📍 Address: Sultan Ahmet Mah., Atmeydanı Cd. No:7, Fatih, Istanbul🕰 Hours: Daily 8:30 AM &ndash; one hour before sunset (Closed to tourists during prayer times)📝 Review:A must-visit landmark in Istanbul! Famous for its six minarets and beautiful blue İznik tiles inside, the Blue Mosque offers stunning Ottoman architecture and a peaceful atmosphere. Entry is free, but respectful clothing is required.✅ Tips:	&bull;	Avoid prayer times (especially Friday noon)	&bull;	Women should bring a scarf to cover hair	&bull;	Plastic bags are provided for shoes⭐ Why Go?Historic, spiritual, and visually breathtaking &mdash; it&rsquo;s right across from Hagia Sophia and perfect for photos and cultural insight.

18th Istanbul Biennial | Istanbul

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18th Istanbul Biennial

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Bosphorus

Topkapi Palace

The Blue Mosque

18th Istanbul Biennial | Istanbul

Details

Vote

Are you interested in 18th Istanbul Biennial?

Recommended Products for 18th Istanbul Biennial | Istanbul

18th Istanbul Biennial

Mandarin Oriental Bosphorus, Istanbul

Four Seasons Hotel Istanbul at Sultanahmet

Hagia Sophia

Basilica Cistern

Ciragan Palace Kempinski Istanbul

Raffles Istanbul

Four Seasons Hotel Istanbul at the Bosphorus

Bosphorus

Topkapi Palace

The Blue Mosque

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